The Lost Hero
by Kellster45
Summary: The five of them were best friends, until seventh grade when Edward was taken away from them. Four years later, a very different Edward returns. What had Edward endured and what will he think of the new addition to the group? AH/AU
1. Prologue

A/N - Hello! This is my first fic, and I've been working on it for a while, so I hope someone out there likes it. Thank you for reading, and of course, Twilight is Stephenie Meyer's.

EPOV June 18, 2006

It was the rainiest, cloudiest, nastiest day of the year. Obviously, the Justice League was taking advantage of it. In the puddles of brown water, Alice, Jasper, and Rosalie were whooping and slapping hands. I think I even saw Alice and Rosalie do a chest-bump. Alice had just scored a touchdown, successfully ending and winning our game of football. I looked at Emmett. He seemed down right astounded, and I couldn't help but laugh. Poor thing looked like he just witnessed a puppy's murder.

Rosalie walked over with a smug smile. "Well, well, well. Looks like you've lost _Superman_. Which color looks best with his eyes, Canary?" She looked at Alice. "I'm thinking either Plugged-in Plum or Just-Kissed Pink."

Emmett looked at me with crazed eyes. I could see him mouthing "help me!" I shrugged helplessly.

"Sorry man, no can do. A bets a bet," I walked over to Jasper who was currently having difficulty breathing from laughing so hard. "You up for some Halo, Flash? I mean, I would ask Superman over here, but he might be busy with his _mani-pedi_ and all…" I trailed off loudly. He groaned and every one laughed.

Emmett had gotten cocky and bet that he and I could beat Alice, Jasper, and Rosalie at a game of football. I stayed away from bets involving Emmett.

This was the first summer of our adolescence. We were now awkward, even though some how Emmett managed to bypass this moody transition. Jasper was shockingly tall and very skinny. The same went for his twin, Rosalie. My sister Alice was still quite small and petite.

As for me, I was as Esme said 'a late bloomer.' I was shorter than half the kids in my grade and I still had the softness in my face that Emmett and Jasper has long since gotten rid off. Emmett's and Jasper's ridicule never ended.

When Alice was finally done complaining about Emmett's 'utterly appalling' cuticles, I heard the screen door to my house slide open. Esme was standing wiping her hands on a dish towel. She looked a little off, but I couldn't quite place it. I looked toward everyone else to see if they had noticed, but only Alice's head was tilted slightly in confusion. Alice and I had always had a very strong bond. She felt my gaze on her and looked at me. She shrugged. The rest of the group was oblivious.

"Well my League, dinner is done. As I believe it is Edward's night, Lasagna and Triple-Chunk-Chocolate Cookies are on the menu."

Again, this was odd. It was definitely Rosalie's night. Ever since second grade, we rotated dinners. Everyone's favorite meal changed with the years. I was the only one who hadn't changed my choices yet. Alice raised her eyebrows, incredulously. Esme never made a mistake.

Having spent all day running around outside, we were exhausted, hungry, and filthy so nobody else seemed to notice or care. They all ran to the door, Emmett of course got there first with a huge excited smile. I swear, food is that mans only true love. Alice and I walked slower, wondering what was wrong with Esme.

Carlisle was already at the table, digging into his still-steaming lasagna. He didn't look different at all, which only comforted me minutely. We ran, stumbling over ourselves, to the perfectly presented meal. Esme, of course, noticed our dirt-caked fingers and sent us all to one of the five bathrooms in the house to wash them.

"Edward," She said softly. I was following Jasper to the bathroom in my room. We both stopped. I could see Alice pause from the corner of my eye, but she continued on.

Esme was quiet for a second, then rolled her eyes and looked at Carlisle. They shared a silent conversation. I couldn't handle it anymore.

"Yeah Ma?" I was slightly nervous. Usually, anything she had to say to me she said in front of the League. Jasper noticed this and his eyebrows knitted in confusion. I shrugged and gestured for him to go on with out me.

Carlisle stood up, staring longingly at his half-finished plate. He was still in his work clothes and looking quite pristine. I was soundlessly begging him to look at me, tell me what was going on. He looked anywhere but at my eyes.

Esme waited until Jasper was up the stairs and silently led me and a moping Carlisle up the stairs and through the hallway to his study. Books filled the floor to ceiling shelving and his computer was showing a slideshow of pictures as a screen saver. Me next to my piano. All of the Justice League on the first day of 5th grade.

When she closed the door, there was a silent pause in which all we did was look at each other. My looks were in uncertainty. Esme's were more nervous. Carlisle just looked like he was trying to look indifferent, but failing. Esme shot Carlisle another hard look after a moment.

The screen now showed Esme and Carlisle in Hawaii last winter.

He took a deep breath and cleared his throat.

"Right. Well, Es-_we_ think it would be a good idea for you to spend the weekend at your mother's house." He said quickly. Esme winced. I stared blankly at them for another silent moment, uncomprehendingly.

"What?" I asked, dumbfounded. "Is that a joke?"

They were silent.

I mean, if they would've told me this any day I would be shocked, but this weekend? This weekend was different. My birthday happened to fall this weekend.

That might sound self-centered to some, but I knew my parents understood. I wasn't the only person who anticipated Edward's Birthday every year. The League treated my birthday like a legit holiday. And for good reason too. Mom and Dad dished out a lot of money for it and it was no doubt the best part of all of our years.

Everyone's birthday was a big deal of course. But for some reason mine was the biggest. I had no idea why, because I have never asked for anything for my birthday.

Esme quickly took over, seeing my face. "Edward, it's not like we can't do something when your back. But you haven't seen Elizabeth,"- I knew I saw her wince when Carlisle called her my mother -"in ages. She called and wanted to see you and her request is not unreasonable. She said she has a new husband and they are running a steady business. A vacation in Illinois will be good for you."

I couldn't help but disagree. I had been to Chicago with my family plenty of times. Another one would not do me any good.

"But… My thirteenth birthday…" I whined very un-Edward-like. Honestly, the real reason I didn't want to go was because I was not anxious to spend even a small amount of time with my birth-mother. I can only remember actually seeing her twice and both times she came off as unpleasant. It was a rare thing for her to send a Christmas card. Esme said it was because she was busy, but even though she was constantly defending her, I knew she didn't like her either.

"There isn't really any reason to bother complaining, Edward. You're going to Chicago." Carlisle said gently. He obviously didn't like Elizabeth either. His euphoria from Esme's cooking had worn off and he probably wanted to get back to it. I could hear the League laughing at the table. Then I heard he distinct sound of Emmett singing Britney Spears.

"Your toxic, I'm slippin' unda!" He was shrieking. I smirked in spite of myself. Suddenly, all I wanted to do was to go down and enjoy the last dinner I would have with them until I came back. The Last Supper, I thought sarcastically. Only this time, the painting consisted of Esme sitting in the middle, overlooking our crazy family.

I looked at my parents and they both looked guilty. That made _me_ feel guilty, I mean it wasn't exactly their fault. I just didn't have it in me to give them a hard time, no matter how much I wanted to yell and refuse. I sighed.

"Okay, when do I leave?"

Esme's face melted into relief and she said, "The plane leaves tomorrow morning. I've already packed for you so don't worry about that." Esme smiled uncertainly, silently asking if this was okay.

My almost-teen-side wanted to bitch about her giving me space, but I knew she meant well. I pressed on.

"And for how long?"

"Four days. But I'm sure it will go by fast." Carlisle said quickly, loving that I was going along with it. Esme still looked slightly guilty.

I smiled to let them think they had been forgiven, and without saying another word, walked down the stairs.

I stopped abruptly at the dining room entrance when I saw Rosalie's face. She had red dripping from her face and her eyes were impossibly wide. It was silent. My brain quickly connected the dots. With the dots being Lasagna, Emmett, and a fork.

There was a roar of laughter, me included. They all turned when they heard me enter. I smiled even wider. Clear on all of their faces was complete happiness. Except for maybe Rosalie.

Alice had her hands on her mouth still shocked at what I'm sure was a completely random act of Emmett. She was trying desperately not to laugh, but that was just resulting in a 'ppppffffftt' sound coming from her nose.

Jasper eyes were watering from laughter, because any distress of his twin made his day. He was also sneakily glancing at Alice. He was my best friend, but I wasn't quite ready for that yet. The corners of my mouth turned down a bit, but were pushed back up when I looked at Emmett.

He was somehow trying to look apologetic while laughing freely. But I could see that he was silently looking for an excuse for covering Rosalie in sauce. I could very easily imagine him saying, "Oh, did you not know Wond-_Rosalie_? I have been battling turrets all my life. It was just a twitch, honest…"

Of course Rosalie was trying to look mad, but there was a hint of amusement in her eyes. She dramatically flicked a glob of Esme's homemade sauce off her cheek. "For that, _Superman_," She spit, "you better believe you will be getting your make-up _and_ hair done in addition to your mani-pedi."

Emmett pouted childishly. "Sorry Rosie," he said sweetly. I rolled my eyes, amused at how Rosalie had him in the palm of her oddly tan hand. I took my usual seat next to Emmett, but didn't touch my plate. I wasn't very hungry anymore. Rosalie excused herself, then came back a couple minutes later, looking as polished as ever.

I had just come to realize that Esme had messed up our dinner schedule to get on my good side. Of course it wasn't a mistake, Esme didn't make mistakes. Sucking up to me didn't work very well, seeing as I lost my appetite as soon as she told me the news.

The Parentals chose that moment to sit down, both looking glum. I knitted my eyebrows. They were supposed to be happy, I had just been a freaking angel child. Instead, they avoided my eye like I was the black sheep of the family.

Emmett's freak-moment was forgotten, and I learned later that night that Emmett had really gotten into the Toxic song and while using his eating utensils as drumsticks, he managed to get it all over Rosalie. Alice said he was on top of his chair, flailing like a monkey, mumbling the words he didn't know and belting out the chorus.

Soon, everyone was in separate conversations. I heard Jasper and Carlisle discussing something about war. Rosalie, Alice, and Esme were trying to figure out what the girls could do to Emmett's hair at tonights sleep over. Esme didn't look particularly interested in the conversation, but she nodded as was needed. Emmett, who was solely focused on shoving food down his throat as fast as possible, turned towards me suddenly. He looked like a kid on Christmas morning.

"Batman! I got your present yesterday! Can I tell you what it is?" He said excitedly. Esme and Carlisle stopped talking and looked at me, finally, silently asking me to tell them. The hilarity of his question went unnoticed.

"Um…" I started hesitantly, not looking forward to disappointing them. At this, everyone was curious and stopped eating. I never said 'um' because I found it annoying. The sound of forks clattering onto plates was deafening.

"Well the Parentals," I said nodding towards Esme and then Carlisle, who rolled their eyes at their title, "say I have to go to Chicago…with Elizabeth… for my birthday."

I didn't want to make Mom and Dad feel bad, so I tried to sound upbeat while communicating with the League that I was horrified at the idea. They all understood immediately that I was not happy, so they backed me up. Alice was the first.

"But Mom! It's Edward's _Birthday_!" she said as if that explained everything. "He can't just… not _be_ here!"

Alice looked pointedly at Jasper. "Yeah," he said, "Momma C, your parties are what I look forward to most in life." Hoping that flattery would win her over.

"He can't go. I will not allow it." Emmett said ridiculously while crossing his arms. As if he actually had the authority. Everyone smiled, but the tension was still thick in the room.

"I'll do the laundry for you everyday of the month if he can stay. Please." Rosalie said sweetly. This was a big deal. I mean, Rosalie couldn't honestly be expected to do any sort of house work with her perfect hair and nails could she?

Esme smiled sadly. "It's not really in my hands guys. Edward's Mother has every right to see him. She thought his birthday would be perfect." Carlisle just nodded, agreeing with her.

Everyone knew her word was final, above even Carlisle, so they sadly picked at there almost-cold lasagna. Jasper looked at me and I nodded, signaling that dinner was done. Five chairs scrapped against the hard wood floor as we stood to clear our plates. I only felt a little bad when I realized I hadn't eating a bite of the lasagna.

Leading the way up the stairs to the big room between me and Alice's room (which we all called the HQ), I looked back at the table and swore I saw Esme crying. Regret crawled through my skin, even thought I had no idea why she was so upset. I tried to look harder but Emmett pushed me up the stairs muttering something about me being 'slower than his a one-legged grandma.' I raised an eye brow, but continued walking.

As soon as we all filed in the room and Alice shut the door, they all looked at me. "I know, I know," I sighed running my hands through my hair, "this sucks." I sat down on the old leather couch, trying to think a way out of the situation. I knew I was going; I just didn't want to accept it.

"Well," Alice said loudly, getting all of our attention, "we can't just waste tonight moping if we won't see him for four days!" She was right. I haven't gone without seeing these guys for that long in a very long time. "We will just have a kick-butt party when Edward gets home. It's not the end of the world." She said unconvincingly.

I nodded and swept my gaze in the circle of my best friends, my family. "She's completely right. I'll put in the movie."

Emmett started humming that stupid song again.

Rosalie smiled. "And I'll get Emmett's nail polish."

His humming stopped.


	2. The Red

EPOV June 15, 2010 (present day)

My world was painted in red and blue. I inspected the dark blue interior of the police car in a daze. I was not cuffed, and tried not to think of why that might be. I didn't want false hope right now. False hope had nearly killed me. I looked out at the night scene and saw policemen wheeling around body bags. I tried not to smile, knowing that I was a complete monster for how hard it was not too. I looked back at the seats.

There were tiny red flecks in the material, pissing me off even further. Why did everything have to be red and blue? I had never disliked the colors, but I think I would kill someone if I saw anymore of them.

Shit. I shuddered. I guess I can't really say that anymore. I had killed someone, so the whole thing was kind of ironic. At least to me. I sighed and looked away.

There was a flurry of activity. Police and paramedics running around. People gathering around the perimeter to see what all the fuss was about. I think I saw one or two cameras from the local news. I knew that by the end of the night, it would be all over the news. I ran a hand through my hair. What a mess my life had become.

The door opened opposite where I was sitting, and a breathless man sat down. He caught his breath, do doubt excited by this fascinating crime story.

"Your name Edward Masen?" He asked suspiciously.

I nearly automatically nodded and mumbled a 'yeah, what's it to you?' but I realized suddenly that my name was Cullen again. Cullen. Edward Cullen.

"No, actually I'm Edward Cullen." I said. My voice sounded rough and unfamiliar.

His eyes widened, but he left it alone. For now. "Well did the EMTs already check you out? Are you okay?" He briefly glanced at my forehead, where there was a bandage probably already soaked in blood. 

"I'm fine." Lie, lie, lie. Maybe somewhat relieved, maybe scared shitless, maybe tired. I wouldn't say I was 'fine.'

"Right… well I think Detective Lyons is going to ask you some questions. So… I'll just go."

He was out the door before I could respond. He left looking terrified and shaky. Was he scared of me? Good.

Another, taller, more put together man sat down next to me. He held out a large hand. I just stared. I wasn't up for this bullshit right now. I wanted to sleep and I needed a smoke.

He cleared his throat awkwardly and pulled his hand back. "Names Lyons. How are you?" He had a folder and a pen, most likely about to write everything I say down. Great.

"I'm fine." I repeat, agitated.

"Okay, well. Edward Cullen, huh? You do realize that one of the nation's largest searches in the past twenty years was put together for that kid, right? Searched everywhere, couldn't find 'em." He said, looking at me doubtfully. That fucking Boston accent had never sounded so infuriating.

Hearing about the search didn't make me feel better, like it used to._ They _saw how happy I got when I heard about it on the radio and how much more confidant I was. James and Elizabethsaid it was because of publicity. My parents gave me away, they were the guilty ones, so they had to keep up the image of the worried and loving family. After a while, I just let myself believe them.

"Yeah, I know. But here I am." I said, gesturing towards my chest. God, this guy was annoying me.

He raised an eyebrow. He didn't believe me, and I didn't care.

"How did you know Elizabeth and James?" I internally smirked at the past tense. Then I hated myself even more.

I thought for a moment before I answered. "Elizabeth was my biological mother. James was her… business partner." I said.

Not responding, he opened his folder and shot out basic questions. They might seem basic, but the pain seared my chest. I, of course, didn't let it show.

"Legal Guardians?"

"Carlisle and Esme Cullen." My voice broke on Esme's name.

"Age?"

"I'll be 17 in a couple of days." I couldn't help to think of the irony. Almost 4 years to the date.

He knitted his eye brows as he realized that all of my information fit. He continued the questions until he was satisfied that I, in fact, _was_ Edward Cullen. He deeply sighed and wiped his hand over his face, mumbling something about a pay raise.

I knew the questions of some sort of substance were coming up so I braced myself. I carefully put up my walls that I took great pride in. I knew it was impossible to get through to me once they were up. Tons of concrete were set up, next to a mote, next to a mine field, next to a barbed wire fence, next to bricks, next to a flat metal wall. The inside of that was lined with padding to make sure I didn't hurt myself going crazy trapped inside.

"Edward. I-I," He paused, thinking about what he should do first. His eyes widened as he realized he forgot something. He whipped out his cell phone; its silver surface was flashing blue and red too. While he was dialing and waiting, I wondered why they couldn't turn off the damn lights for a minute.

"Booker! Yeah, you won't believe it, but I've got Edward Cullen sitting next to me. Yes, _the_ Edward Cullen. I need you to get the Forks' Police on the phone. Tell 'em we got him and to contact the Cullen's to tell them…Right…He'll be landing in Forks tomorrow around noon…Okay…Yupp…Bye."

I briefly wondered what time it was in Washington. It was too painful to imagine their faces, so I focused on the bruises covering my body and the blood dripping from my knuckles. More blue and red.

"Edward I need the story from beginning to end. Don't leave out one detail, and take as long as you want." His tone was suddenly sympathetic. It made me hate him even more.

I narrowed my eyes and looked hard at his face. He had tired blue eyes, but his mouth was set in determination. His pores were so large that they were visible in the night. He was sweating like a pig and it disgusted me. He had dark purple circles under his eyes, which I'm sure resembled my own. His blonde hair swayed as he shifted positions, nervous for my reply.

I snorted. This fucker thinks I'm just going to tell him my life story?

"Look, just take me to a hotel. I'm tired as fuck, and I don't feel like talking to anyone right now. It's been a rough night, I'm sure you can imagine." I smiled a fake sweet smile at the last few words.

He stayed seated for a moment, stunned. "Uh, right… okay" He straightened his tie and slipped out of the car.

With Lyons questions about what happened, he brought memories. He brought pain. As if I need that right now.

_Flashback, June 19, 2006_

"_Flight 78 is now boarding. Flight _78_ is now boarding. Thank you." said a ladies voice on the intercom. Esme turned towards me, frowning. I'm pretty sure she didn't think it was a good idea anymore._

_Carlisle shook his head at Esme's expression and turned to me. "You'll be back in no time. Call us anytime of the day. I'm sure Elizabeth will be more then willing to lend you her cell phone." My cell phone had broken during last nights… festivities and we couldn't get a new one until I returned._

"_We'll miss you sweetie. Oh, and Happy Birthday." Esme said. I cringed at the word 'sweetie'. The League didn't come to the airport, and I was kind of glad for it. I didn't want the uncomfortable goodbyes._

_I didn't have a carry-on, just my wallet in my pocket. I was flying Unaccompanied-Minor so I had to board first.  
_

"_Bye. Love you." I quickly hugged Esme, and walked towards the perky flight-attendant. I looked back when she was checking my ticket. They were both waving. Esme and Carlisle mouthed 'Goodbye' at the same time._

_I spent the flight thinking about where I would rather be. I was sitting in first-class so I didn't have to worry about some smelly old man or a cat-obsessed crazy lady sitting next to me way to close for comfort. _

_Of course, when thinking of where I would rather be, my first thoughts were the HQ. It was a blue room because it was the only color we all agreed on. With a leather couch, a bean bag, and two leather lazy boys, there was plenty of space to sit. A plasma TV, an impressive stereo system, a computer, and a mini-fridge provided the entertainment. On the walls were some of our school art-work and of course tons of pictures of the League. A few posters of bands we liked were hung too._

_Other places I would rather be included the Middle School Park, or even better, at an amusement park for my birthday with the Justice League running at my side. And I would _kill_ to have my baby grand with me._

_In no time I had fallen asleep._

_I was shaken awake by the landing turbulence and looked out the window. The massive Chicago O'Hare airport was beneath me._

_To my mortification, as soon as we landed and were set to get off the plane, the intercom crackled on._

"_Edward, why don't you head up to the front?" _

_All of the business men and strict-looking women looking at me, my big red pin that said 'UNACOMPANIED MINOR' giving me away. _

_I stood, not looking at anyone. Especially Molly, the perky blonde attendant whose teeth were so white I wanted to scrub coffee beans on them. _

_As soon as I walked out of the nice, air conditioned plane and onto the covered platform leading me to the airport, hot June air swirled around me. The tunnel was suddenly too small and I couldn't breath right. Impatient passengers slipped past me, as I was walking at much to slow of pace. _

_Finally, I nervously entered O'Hare. Would she recognize me? My question was answered when a red haired woman walked towards me smiling. Her smile was not comforting, it looked forced. She gathered me into her skinny arms and I hesitantly hugged her back._

"_Edward," she breathed. "Hello, darling." _

_She pulled away from me and held me out at arms length inspecting me. She sorta-smiled again. _

"_Darling, I would like you to meet James, my husband." She got off her knees and gestured to a tall man with his hands in his pocket. He was mildly intimidating. His hair was pulled into a ponytail and was wearing a leather motorcycle jacket. _

_He walked over to us. "Hey kid." He nodded towards me. He extended a dirty hand. I quickly snuck a glance at Elizabeth's hands. I couldn't help but notice that neither hand had a band on it._

"_Hello. How are you?" I said while shaking his hand firmly. Esme was to blame for my reflex-manners. _

_He grunted something in response and I wanted to smile because he obviously forgot the part where he asks how I am in return. It made me feel mature. And we all know how almost-13- year-olds just _love_ to feel mature._

"_Well let's get to the car." Elizabeth said breaking the awkward silence. We all walked in a single file line for some reason. Elizabeth, then me, and James in back. This unusual formation made me slightly nervous. _

_When we finally got to the parking lot, she stopped at a beat up Volvo. Its silver surface was no longer shiny, and one window had duct tape covering it. The left tail light was smashed and the area around it was dented._

_James put my suitcase in the trunk and I slid into the back seat. It smelled heavily of cigarettes. When James slammed the passenger door shut (_and failed to put on his seatbelt,_ my inner-Carlisle thought) Elizabeth started car. Her pocket vibrated as her cell phone rang, stopping her from driving away._

_She pulled it out of her pocket and read the front, seeing who was calling her so inconveniently. Her eyes met mine briefly in the review mirror before she pressed a button, effectively silencing it. _

_Much to my surprise, as we drove away, she chucked it out the window. _


	3. Crawling

**A/N- Hello again! Here's another chapter, hope you enjoy it. **

June 16, 2010 EPOV

I had a couple minutes to myself in the police car, finally. Little things were popping into my head that I would normally never let myself think about. Will I still be able to play piano? Or had my nearly practice-less years away from it stripped my talent? Was the whole League still living in Forks? Were they still friends? It was hard to imagine them not being friends, but it's been a long time. Things change. Had they done anything to my room? Was my birthday celebrated? Did they miss me?

Fuck, I sounded like a little girl.

The driver's car door swinging open distracted me from my musings and a woman, who I guessed was the Chief, started the car without a word. But she was looking at me in the rear view mirror like I was Oprah fucking Winfrey.

I just looked out the window and concentrated on the few stars in the sky. Time passed slowly and the air conditioning blowing hard made my long, untidy hair tickle my forehead. The throbbing from the cut on my forehead was finally starting to get to me. I couldn't remember how I got it, just like the hundreds of other bruises and scars I had accumulated over the years.

Once we pulled into the circle drive, the Chief let the valet take away the car and led me into the fancy hotel. Thank God no one recognized me. I probably looked a hell of a lot different then the sixth-grade me that was in pictures everywhere.

"I have a reserved room under 'Cullen'" Chief said. The girl at the desk's face was glowing blue from the computer screen. This blue color was fucking stalking me.

"Okay, that's room 216 for you." She held out a key to her and the Chief looked at me, telling me it was mine.

I took it and started walking away without another word. I stopped and turned around when I heard the Chief speak.

"Lyons and I will be picking you up here at 6:00. Sorry about not having much sleeping time, but I'm sure you want to get home soon." She said quickly. She seemed to be scared of me too.

"Got it." I said simply and walked off towards the elevators. I almost wanted to laugh when I noticed the blue carpeting and red paintings on the wall. What I really wanted to do was jump right before the elevator started and when it stopped. It was a League thing. I, of course, didn't. Childish and immature were not exactly in my vocabulary.

When I got to my floor, I took my time looking for my room. Everyone was sleeping so I tried to be quiet. Being quiet wasn't hard with no luggage.

All I had was a much worn out tan leather wallet Carlisle given me, with a picture of Esme, Carlisle, and the League at the annual Christmas Party. I tried not to look at the picture. I was ashamed of myself, and looking at their faces would make me even more so. There eyes seemed to look right through me, which I hated. I had a tiny bag of cocaine in my back pocket and one of weed in my wallet. I also had a pack of smokes in my pocket. I found this amusing seeing as I had just been accompanied by a large number or law-enforcers right after a drug-related crime.

I was looking down at the speckled carpet that seemed to be in every hotel (I'll give you one guess as to what the main colors where), when ahead of me I heard a group of kids running my way. I looked up, annoyed. They were screaming and laughing loudly, clearly unaware that it was 2 a.m.

They rounded the corner. There were five of them. Three girls and two boys. One guy was giving a girl a piggy back ride. Something just fucking hysterical must have happened because they were laughing like they would never laugh again. They looked about my age. My heart learched when I thought of the League and how that could've been us. I clenched my jaw angrily, blocking the thought of them out.

They finally saw me and tried to conceal their cackles. Some of them looked at me weird. I no doubt looked strange with a bloody bandage and alone. As soon as they passed me and turned down the hall, I heard their muffled laughs again. It all seemed so immature, and in translation, it looked unfamiliar.

I saw a gold '216' shining in the dim light and I slid the key in the door. When the light turned green, I pushed in the heavy door, exhausted. Like I would actually sleep. I internally rejoiced when I found that there was not even a little bit of blue, just a red ice box.

The bathroom looked appealing seeing as I couldn't remember the last time I took a shower. But I just couldn't will myself to walk anymore. I just sat on my bed, dazed.

It hadn't really sunk in before but now everything was hitting me full force. Esme. Carlisle. Alice, Emmett, Jasper, Rosalie. The Black Canary, Superman, Flash, Wonder Woman. Mom. Dad.

This couldn't be happening. I would snap out of it and realize I was in a mental asylum any minute now. After living every day not knowing if it would be my last, I had grown used to the idea that I might not see them again. And now, sham-fucking-wow! I'm going to see them in a matter of hours. This just _couldn't_ be happening.

My brain and body was numb. I had managed not to think about what I had done today. My family was nothing compared to that horrifying thought. I flopped down on top of the covers, trying to take my mind off of it by imaging how much the League had grown up. I did this while lighting a cigarette. I inhaled deeply. For some reason, I felt like I was cheating on them by smoking and thinking about them at the same time.

I would kill for a cup of coffee.

Ha-fucking-ha. Kill.

Everything was black except the robotic red numbers. 5:45 was giving everything a scarlet glow. I hadn't slept a wink. I got up and paced the length of the room.

I looked in the mirror, wanting to look a little bit presentable. This was odd all in itself. While inspecting myself in the mirror, I realized I look much too old for sixteen going on seventeen.

I resembled a homeless serial killer. My once-white t-shirt had been reduced to a light brown with holes freckled across it. My jeans were wrinkled and dirty. I was wearing a pear of James old leather boots and jacket, so I edited myself; a homeless serial killer who rides a motorcycle. My hair was long and untidy and I had stubble on my cheeks. I was muscular, so that made me look more frightening. Working out had been away to pass time and I wanted to be in shape so I could fend off James on my own. Plus, I wasn't exactly eating feasts for the last couple of years.

I'm sure my number of bruises and scars would make me look unapproachable too. My eyes were haunted and framed with purple rings. I winced when I looked at my forehead. The bandage was fully soaked in blood and around it was crusty dry blood. I pulled it off and expertly replaced it with the one the EMT gave me. I stepped back and surveyed my work.

I felt a huge surge of doubt. Was this a good idea? I was not the same happy-go-fucking-lucky kid I was when I last saw my family. I changed so much I could barely remember what I was like before. Would they still treat me the same? Would they want me when they realized what I had done? Of course not. I was a monster.

I quickly thought over everything that I was guilty of. I knew I was not good enough for my family. I wouldn't blame them if they didn't accept me and I would not force myself on them.

I shook my head trying to clear away those thoughts. I stood up to fast and my world spun. I thought back to the last time I ate and my empty stomach ached. I sighed and walked out the door. It was still early so there wasn't a whole lot of activity. I kept my eyes down until I got to the lobby and spotted the tall frame of Lyons and the small one of the Chief.

They were facing away from me talking quietly. I tried to exaggerate my foot steps so they would hear me coming. I had obtained a habit of being silent. Lyons quickly stopped talking and smiled at me. I didn't smile back.

"Good to see you." He said, happily.

Silence. His smile faltered.

"Well the Press is going to find out soon, so we better get out of here." He said looking around, appearing uneasy.

I didn't have a great reason to hate him, but I wanted to whip out my wallet and its contents just to show this prick what a great cop he was. My smirk didn't leave the confines of my mind. I'm sure I still looked like a homeless murderer. Who owns a motorcycle.

They walked out into the grey morning and I trailed behind them taking out my wallet. I scanned the perimeter. All I saw was a couple of valets who looked tired as shit and some old ladies speed walking.

I knew I couldn't take the drugs on the plane so simply pulled out both baggies and dropped them on the concrete. I didn't take a chance with my cigs and dropped those too. No one noticed.

I followed them to the circular drive and into a black SUV. It was so clean and I couldn't wait to dirty it. When I sat, the leather crunched under me. The car started, and the radio turned on before Lyons could turn it down.

'It is reported that late last night there was a major drug bust leaving _6 people_ dead. Only one survived and this person's identity is currently unknown. An excessive amount of cocaine,' The news lady couldn't finish. Lyons popped in a Beatles CD and tapped his fingers to the beat.

I was trying desperately to forget the radio, and the two cops didn't know how I would react. I clenched and unclenched my fists, squeezing an invisible stress ball. Finally, after the third playing of 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' we pulled into the airport parking lot.

He parked the huge car and hopped out. I noticed he was very happy today. Like _he_ was the one who was seeing his family for the first time in 4 years. I guessed a pay raise had something to do with it.

I just followed order and footsteps in a blur until we got to the gate. Lyons handed me a burger he had somehow gotten a hold of. He awkwardly said goodbye. The Chief just nodded looking more relaxed then she did last night.

"Good luck kid." She said. I responded my shoving the burger in my mouth, suddenly hungry as hell.

They left as soon as the voice over head said "Flight 118 is taking passengers now. That's Flight 118."

I walked to the women and handed her my ticket without looking at her. All I could see was her too-long fake nails handing me the stub. Everyone was looking at me a little too long. Probably wondering how the hell I got through security.

Looking down at the ticket, I realized that I was sitting coach, unlike the last time I had been on a plane. I found my seat fast and thankfully I had the window seat next to a normal looking middle-aged man who was already preoccupied with his laptop.

We climbed into the sky, and the mixed emotions I felt were unbearable. I had been made nearly emotionless for the past four years. To say I was feeling strange was a complete understatement. I was drowning in wave after wave of it all. I waited for faces, feelings, and sins to pull me under and kill me.

**A/N- Just wanted to say that I'll be on vacation for a little over a week, so until then, tell me what you think! Thanks for reading. **


	4. Colorblind

**A/N Hello again! Here's the fourth chapter of what I hope to be many. And I'm sure you've figured out that Twilight & it's characters belong to Ms. Meyer. **

June 17, 2010

There was a hand on my shoulder, gently shaking me. I ignored it. I didn't want the lifeguards help. I was totally okay with dying right there in the ocean of myself. The gentle shaking turned violent after a moment. I snapped my head around angrily, ready to complain, when I saw a concerned pair of eyes.

"Sorry kid, but you didn't snap out of it when we landed. Scared me," the man I was sitting next to said, clearly relieved.

I looked around and noticed that I was definitely not engulfed in water. Most of the people had already gotten off the plane. I must have been in some weird daydream/trance thing. It was fun while it lasted.

"Thank you. Sorry to keep you." I said, trying to get back into Esme's impeccable manner habits. It just ended up sounding forced and strange when I said it.

I stood up, rubbing my eyes and he awkwardly gathered his things, ready to go.

"No problem at all. Have a good one." _I'll have the best_, I thought to myself.

He shuffled down the aisle and I was suddenly trembling. Hard. My breaths were heavy and my heart dropped down to my stomach. I was about to see her or him. Someone, anyone! Anyone that was part of my old life.

Was I happy? I couldn't tell. Anyone in his right mind would be happy. But, I don't know if I'm exactly in my right mind. I couldn't focus and everything sort of blurred.

I walked out of the airplane with my heart beating too loudly in my ear. I tried to hurriedly flatten my hair. What was happening to me?

I kept my eyes down, noticing the change of flooring, notifying me that I was in the gate. I couldn't breathe. Time halted. I knew someone in this room! _I actually knew someone here that didn't have to do with a push!_ My mind was screaming.

But I couldn't look up. I was afraid I would start crying. I hadn't cried in a _long_ time and I really didn't want to cry in public.

After the longest seconds of my life, I heard a gasp. _Her_ gasp. I choked back a sob, and before looking up, I turned my face into a hard mask. I took a deep breath and slowly raised my head. I was confidant no emotions could be seen on my face.

My eyes were immediately met with Carlisle's. They were too far away and yet much too close. He should stay away, he should come here. Everything in me was battling with something else. Was I dead? Was I actually sleeping? Or is by some miracle/tragedy this completely real?

I didn't move for a long time, and neither did they. Esme and Carlisle looked elated at first, then I saw a lot of concern. I wondered what they thought I had been doing for that last four years. Selling lemonade? Ha, I don't think so.

They looked sort of…old. They had always seemed young and invincible to me, but now, they just looked old. Last time I saw them, they were 34, now they are 38. It was old to me. Both dressed impeccably of course.

I was sick of standing there like a jackass, so I slowly started walking towards them. When they saw me move they basically ran over to me. We were standing in front each other soon. I looked into Esme's eyes, seeing pure happiness. I had been imagining this moment for so long, and now it's finally here and I can't form words. How was I supposed to act? I had forgotten how to be Edward.

She suddenly let out a loud sob. "Oh, Edward!" she whisper-yelled. She threw her arms around me, hugging me tightly. I clutched on to her, not really knowing what else to do. The love for my Mother that I had been holding back for the past years flooded in and overwhelmed me.

I heard Carlisle sniffle and join in on the hug. I felt his large, soft hands (a doctor thing), on my back. The hands that had clutched mine, showing me how to swing a bat and how to check a pulse.

I released them and looked down. I realized I hadn't let one tear slip. Well thank fucking god I can still call myself a little bit of a man.

I saw Esme looking over my appearance. She didn't look disgusted or disappointed. Just very concerned.

"Edward, are you ok?" She asked plainly, looking me straight in the eyes. Was I?

"I don't know," I said with a scratchy voice. I feel horrible for saying it though. I know she wants me to be happy almost as much as I want myself to be.

Carlisle sucked in a breath to say something, but closed his mouth, probably not knowing what to say. We all just look at one another in disbelief, not exactly smiling but not frowning. I could feel my guilt and the past years hanging over my head, and I didn't want to look them in the eye. It was extremely awkward, I couldn't lie. A little voice in the back of my head reminded me of the Justice League. I looked around and Esme read my mind.

"We thought it would be best to just surprise them, Edward. They don't know yet." She said softly waiting for my reaction.

I didn't care. I was just nervous of what their reaction toward me would be. The need to fit in with my peers was something I had never felt before. I was so used to being with people twice my age.

I hoped they haven't changed the same way I have.

Carlisle spoke, looking happy, but different somehow. Like, really happy, as in before I was gone happy. "A couple things have changed you know, Edward. It's…it's been a long time."

Great. "Different how? Are they all still there?" I asked frowning. They didn't know, but that was not what I was really asking. I was just hoping they were all normal and healthy… shit like that.

Esme laughed lightly. I basked in it, only knowing a throaty cackle for far too long. "Of course they are Edward, don't listen to Carlisle." She said giving Carlisle a small glare. "Lets just get you home."

My breath caught at the word home. So foreign yet so familiar. Hard to think that just 24 hours ago, I was getting the shit kicked out of me because I didn't get the money for the Volvo's gas. James was not happy.

I pushed the thoughts of the past away. As long as no one mentioned the last couple years, I would be alright. I think. Hopefully. Who was I kidding? I most definitely would not be 'alright.' Just because I was back doesn't mean I'm healed. I don't know if I'll ever be, honestly. But I can pretend. I will pretend, for my family.

We walked, shoulder to shoulder with me in the middle. Esme was clutching my hand tightly and Carlisle wouldn't stop looking at me. He had nearly knocked into a little girl's piece of luggage, so he wasn't ogling to frequently now. It was a short walk to a sleek black Mercedes.

"This is our car. We got a new one about a year ago…" Carlisle said sliding in the driver's seat after the locks clicked.

I practically floated into the back seat. I didn't look forward because I could feel Carlisle looking at me through the mirror. The drive home was quiet and slightly uncomfortable. I gaped at the familiar scenery, feeling like I was tainting it somehow. When we drove into Forks, memories assaulted me, even though I really didn't want to fucking deal with them right now.

Emmett buying a whole crate of silly string in the local grocery store. It was every penny of his allowance. Jasper and I had to help him lug it to the car. That was a great night at the Cullen house. Except for the cleaning up the whole back yard part. We were 8.

Rosalie and Alice's Bakery Ban. They were reading some girly magazine when they were shocked to find out that eating too many donuts and cookies would make them fat. It was almost Spring Break so they decided to never eat from our delicious little bakery again. Emmet, Jasper and I would go in the building which had a warm cinnamon aroma and wave fudge under there nose. They caved after a week. We were 10.

I took a sharp intake of breath as we turned onto our private drive, which led to the House. _My_ house. Jesus, this was surreal. It was happening to fast.

Carlisle turned off the engine and they both got out of the car. I slowly reached for the handle and stepped out. The house was just as I remembered it. Beautiful. Big and white with tons of Esme's flowers and a tree that had a huge 'JL' carved into it. Suddenly, I didn't want to look. It didn't feel like it was mine.

I sighed deeply and looked at my parents. They were watching me, both of them looking very content with their arms wrapped around each other. That kind of love was so different from what I was used to.

They both quickly glanced at the main garage. I scanned the whole yard until I saw _it_ shining in the sunlight. I had just noticed that it was abnormally sunny for Forks.

Any trace of emotion was wiped off my face. How did they know? Was it reported that I had been seen in a Volvo or did they just think I would like it? Was it even for me?

I turned to them with questioning eyes, trying not to look angry. I'm sure I failed. Being angry was how I covered up being scared.

When they saw the look on my face, they quickly became concerned.

"Edward, what's wrong?" Carlisle said worriedly. He was scanning my face and body, probably making sure I wasn't hurt or in pain or something like that. But I was, he just couldn't see it.

"I don't understand," I said, barely audible. I had frozen on the spot with this horrible reminder.

"We thought you would want a car. This one just screamed 'Edward' to me… do you like it?" Esme said quickly. She sounded nervous and embarrassed that she might've chosen wrong.

But of course she had chosen right. And this one was certainly in much better shape than the other one and only a slightly different model. I slowly grinned, knowing it was fake, and hoping they couldn't tell.

"Thanks, I love it. It just…surprised me." I said hugging Esme again.

I didn't look at them or the Volvo. They let it go. Esme grabbed my hand and walked away from the car.

They led me slowly through the grass to my front door. I imagined everything that ever went on beyond that door. They looked at me, telling me that I had the honors. I slowly turned the door knob and pushed the door open, feeling like an intruder.

**A/N I have come to realize that reviews make my day, don't you wanna make my day? Thanks for reading!**


	5. We're Going to be Friends

**A/N- Here you go! Enjoy :)**

BPOV April 5, 2007

I can remember the day I first stepped into the Cullen's house like it was yesterday. It was Spring Break in '07. I had moved to Forks two days before, and I was bored. Charlie was working, which I had to force him to do. He had wanted to stay home and help me get settled, but that process had taken all of an hour the day I arrived.

I laced up my shoes and put on my new blue raincoat that I had learned was absolutely necessary in Forks. It was a little muggy, so I put on my beloved shorts. I probably would have worn them if it was fifty degrees outside, just for a small taste of Arizona.

A note was left for Charlie, just in case I wasn't home in time for dinner. Another fact I had acquired was that my dad could, plain out, not cook. I had taken to making dinner. A lasagna was prepared, extra cheese and all, waiting for him to pop into the oven (for which I also left detailed notes with a diagram- you can never be too safe.)

The ground squished underneath my shoes as I started down my road. It was soggy from the thunderstorm last night, but now it was only lightly sprinkling, the standard mist I remembered from my childhood summers. I kept walking for a while, trying to get used to the green scenery all over again.

I stopped at the beach on the reservation for a little bit, to rest. I couldn't decide where I wanted to go next. I picked a random direction and headed off down the road, which had very few cars traveling on it.

It started to rain a little harder and I decided to start back home. I didn't realize how long my walk had been.

Suddenly, a little opening off the road that headed into the forest caught my eye. I wondered if anyone knew about it. Wanting whatever tiny piece of adventure I could get in Forks, I decided to walk towards it.

When I reached it, I realized it was some sort of gravel trail. Intrigued, I stepped onto it. It was climbing gradually. I was starting to get tired.

I was ready to turn back when I tripped over a large, fallen branch. Not one of my most gracious moments. I landed with a hard thud, and the breath was immediately drawn from my chest. I caught myself with my hands and knees, like I had learned from incidents just like this, to avoid hitting my head. It took around 5 seconds for me to smell the irony substance that I loathed. My head spun.

The pain in my palms and knees was sharp and I panicked.

I got up slowly, embarrassed to feel tears on my cheeks. I looked around me and that's when I saw the huge white mansion at the end of the trail. Mentally, I slapped myself on the head. Obviously, it was a drive way.

The house looked pretty and inviting. I noticed flowers starting to bloom. I reasoned that no serial killer could live in a house with a flower garden. It made no sense, but I was desperate.

The first step I made towards the house made me cry out. The pain in my knees was unbearable. I looked down and saw the warm blood dripping down my leg. I bit my lip.

I finally made it to the front door even though my knees protests made me cry even harder. Hesitantly, I knocked on the door using the back of my hand. I didn't want my blood to ruin the perfect white door.

I looked down and tried to wipe my tears away, knowing I was a mess. I looked up when footsteps sounded beyond the door. Finally, the door opened. He looked my age, though he was extremely muscular and tall. He towered over me. I would be lying if I said he didn't frighten me a little.

When he first opened the door there was an odd expression of pure hope on his face. His smile quickly faltered when he saw me.

"Holy monkeys," He breathed, taking in my appearance. I stood there awkwardly for a couple minutes wondering when he was going to do something. My mood was sour, whether it being the embarrassment of the whole situation, or the fact that I hated being taken care of.

I spun around; totally ready to walk home and not bother these people with my stupidity.

He finally snapped into attention, looking up. "Right, sorry, um… come in. No, wait, stay here. No! Come in." He stepped aside, gesturing me to enter.

"But…I'm all dirty." I said weakly, turning around to face him. He rolled his eyes and grabbed my forearm, pulling me in.

"Momma and Poppa C!" He called. I wanted to be amused/embarrassed but the blood was just overwhelming.

A beautiful couple rushed into the room, looking oddly hopeful, just like the boy who opened the door did.

The women gasped when she saw me. "Oh, my! Are you okay sweetie? What happened?" she said, and I recognized a very maternal aura .

I couldn't find my voice. I tried to say something, but I couldn't. She kneeled down in front of me and put her hands around my face. After a moment she said, "I'm Esme and this is Carlisle. Get your bag," She said turning toward the man. She began to say something else, but I couldn't understand it because everything was wiped away into blackness.

When I woke up, there were six pairs of eyes staring down at me. I looked around and discovered that I was on a bed, over the covers. I still had my shoes and dirty clothes on.

When Carlisle realized I had woken up, he stopped whatever he was doing to my knees.

"Hello, my name is Carlisle Cullen. I'm a doctor, so don't worry about going to the hospital. I gave you some numbing ointment, so you shouldn't feel a thing, " he smiled kindly. "Would you like to call your parents? You've been unconscious for about 10 minutes. I imagine they are worried," he whipped out a silver cell phone and handed it to me.

I took it, glancing at all of the people staring at me. A warm blush colored my cheeks. Dialing Charlie's number hurt, but only a little. I noticed that both of my hands were wrapped in gauze and were feeling kind of numb. I think I heard someone leave the room.

Charlie finally answered, sounding a little breathless. "Hello?"

"Hey dad, it's Bella," _duh,_ "I'm sorry I'm so late, but I fell and Dr. Collins is helping me. I'm at his house," I managed to put together rather choppily.

Everyone around the bed started laughing quietly. I raised an eyebrow, not knowing what it was about.

Charlie was quiet for a minute. "Oh! You mean Dr. Cullen."

That explains the laughter. I blushed deeper.

"Well thank the Lord he was around. Will you ask him if it's okay if I pick you up after work Bells? I'm sorry but I really am swamped. We got another lead on a major kidnapping. I haven't even gotten home yet," he admitted sheepishly.

I covered the mouth piece and turned to Dr. Cullen. He obviously overheard the conversation, because before I could say anything he spoke.

"Of course. I'm not quite done yet anyway." He said. I finally noticed how tired and old he looked, despite his relatively young appearance. I felt like a terrible burden, but I couldn't do anything about it.

I finished up my conversation with Charlie and hung up the phone when Esme re-entered the room. She looked like she had been crying. I stared at her questioningly.

I held out the phone for Carlisle without looking at him. I was still staring at the sad women. She smiled back at me, but it looked forced.

"Are you okay? You look too sad." I said quietly. The blood and drowsiness was making me a bit loopy.

Everyone looked away at my question. But Esme just widened her eyes a little and then smiled gently at me.

"I'm fine sweetie. Just tired. You should be worrying about you right now." She patted my arm soothingly.

I smiled weakly, knowing she was lying, but not wanting to pry.

A tiny, black-haired girl suddenly spoke. The words gushed out of her like she had been holding them in the whole time.

"Hi! I'm Alice; this is Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett. But you can call us…" she trailed off when she noticed that the three were glaring at her, clearly telling her to shut up. What was that about? They all seemed like a very odd family. I was way out of my element by now.

"Right…" she said quietly, but then perked up. "Anyway! My mom and dad are Esme and Carlisle. Emmett, Rose, and Jasper are my friends. Rose and Jasper are twins…" she trailed off again, stopping herself from saying something. "What's your name? I haven't seen you around. Are you new?" she paused, waiting for me to answer.

"Um, I'm Isabella Swan. But please, call me Bella. I just moved here from Phoenix to live with my dad, Charlie."

Carlisle sighed, and straightened up. "Well, my work here is done. You should rest, before your dad gets here. Would you like to be alone?" he asked, pointedly looking at the four kids.

I could see Alice's face sadden, so of course I told him I was fine. After he closed the door, no one spoke. I looked around the room which looked like it belonged to one of the boys. That's odd. None of the boys lived here did they?

"So… does one of you guys sleep in this room? Alice, you don't look like much of a tomboy to me," I said, trying to be funny. I mean, to me it was. Alice was covered with pink and looked very put-together. She was very pretty.

Everyone looked away sharply. I heard the blonde boy, Jasper speak. "No, no one is staying in this room anymore."

They all looked desperately sad. I regretted ever speaking because I clearly kept bringing up something forbidden. But come on, Did they have a psychotic sibling who thought it was a chicken that they locked in the basement or something?

"Right… Well… What grade are you guys in?" I asked, hoping to get off the unknown subject.

Emmett looked up, relieved. "We're all in eighth grade. You?"

I smiled. "Same here. Looks like we'll be seeing a lot of each other. _Grrrreat_," I said, feigning annoyance.

Alice and Emmett laughed. Like a bell and a bear. The Twins smiled.

"I love your rain coat! It's such a pretty blue. I'm so used to the ugly yellow," Alice said.

And with that, four insane friendships were created.

BOV June 19, 2007

It took around four months for Alice to finally break down and tell me what happened. Why everyone at school looked at them weird and never talked to me. School had gotten out a few weeks before, and I had never seen the family seem so sad. Esme had resorted to Hamburger Helper for dinner. That seriously scared me.

We were having a sleep-over and I plainly stated how frustrated I was when no one was smiling or willing to have a good time.

Rosalie looked at me and smiled apologetically. "I don't think I'm up for this. I'm going to get my beauty rest. Night."

I looked around, stunned. She had never just…left. Strangely enough, everyone was nodding, agreeing.

One by one they all got up and muttered their goodnight, heading towards their respective bedrooms, girls using Alice's and boys using the spare I had first met them in. Alice was the only one who stayed. She had a far away look in her eyes. When she looked at me, I saw a single tear slip out of her eye.

"Alice, please, what's wrong?" I asked quietly. The worst thing I could think of was seeing the people I loved, in pain. That sight was becoming way too familiar.

I looked at my best friend and sighed. I crawled over to her and sat down, Indian-style, across from her.

"It's okay Alice; you don't have to tell me. It's just hard to see you cry." I said soothingly. I took her hand and rubbed circled around her palm, because I knew she loved how it felt.

She looked at our hands and smiled slightly, before abruptly taking her hand from mine and looking into my eyes.

"No, Bella. You should know," she said with a determination that I loved her for.

There was a large pause. She waited. I bit my lip. After a few shaky breaths, she opened her mouth.

"Emmett, Jasper, Rosalie, Edward and I had, no-_have _been friends since birth. Esme, Julianne, and Lillian had been high school friends. Elizabeth," she began but abruptly shook her head, correcting herself, "Julianne is Emmett's mom and Lillian the Twins. We grew up together and we were all each other knew. No one in the world had-_has_ a tighter friendship than us. You included, of course." She paused to smile at me, and I could only nod.

"When we were six, Esme, Lillian, and Julianne were running out of ideas for Halloween costumes. We honestly didn't care what we dressed up as, we just wanted the candy, you know?" but I knew this was a rhetoric question.

"One day, she finally had a brilliant idea. Emmett had been watching cartoons, The Justice League."

I knew these words held an importance to her, the way her eyes scrunched from the taste of them, and how she stated rubbing her hands together gave her away.

"Edward had been playing his piano when out of no where; Emmett ran and tackled him off his bench. He was wearing a towel as a cape and yelling 'I am Superman!'

Of course Edward had no idea what was going on and was yelling at Emmett. Esme came into the room, having heard the ruckus. She didn't even try to stop Emmett. She just said 'Justice League' real quietly, looking relieved. She had found Halloween costumes for us," she told the story with unfocused eyes, looking beyond the air we were breathing into her past.

"On Halloween night, we had so much fun. Emmett was of course, Superman. I was the Black Canary. Rosalie, Wonder Woman and Jasper, Flash. Edward, my brother, was Batman. We didn't know anything about the super-heroes except a little about their powers. It wasn't like we were huge fans, but overtime we sort of adapted into them somehow.

"Anyways, after that night we all referred to ourselves as the Justice League. We called each other by our super-hero names when we were by ourselves. That's how this room got its name, the HQ. After Edward… went away…we just didn't, no couldn't, do it anymore. It brought back to many memories. The week of Edward's thirteenth birthday, his biological mother, Elizabeth, said she wanted Edward to visit her," Alice's eyebrows tensed and her tone was clipped.

"Before Carlisle met Esme, he was married to Elizabeth. She was pregnant and he didn't want her to be unsupported. Elizabeth was neglectful towards baby Edward so he hired Esme as a nanny. Obviously, they fell in love. The rest involves a nasty divorce stripping Carlisle of a lot of money, but he ended up with full custody of Edward. Esme and Carlisle got married and had me. Anyways…"

I briefly wondered how Alice could possibly be in the same grade as Edward, seeing as he was already young for his grade.

"We were all bummed. Edward's Birthday Party was so much fun every year, and now we couldn't do it. But it wasn't just that. I had a feeling, a really bad feeling about it. I didn't tell anyone…but I just knew something was wrong. I didn't do anything about it."

Now tears were freely pouring down her cheeks. She took a deep breath and nearly slapped the tears off her face.

"He left for Chicago. While he was gone, Esme and Carlisle were really stressed because Elizabeth wouldn't answer her phone. Finally, the day rolled around when Edward was supposed to be coming home. Carlisle and Esme drove to the airport. The League stayed home decorating and cooking, wanting to surprise him. Music was playing and everyone was so happy. We were a team, and when one of us was missing it was like a little piece of each of us was gone too.

"Time passed and soon it was dark. Esme, Carlisle, and Edward were supposed have been home hours ago. Emmett fell asleep on the couch and the Twins were watching TV. I was sitting by the window, waiting. Finally I saw Carlisle headlights heading up the drive. I jumped up and screamed, 'He's here! He's here!'

"We all rushed around turning the music back on and turning off the lights. The lock clicked and the door opened. We all yelled totally different things including 'Surprise!' 'Welcome home!' and 'Happy birthday!'

"But Edward n-never walked through the d-door." When she looked up to me, her eyes scared me.

"Oh Alice! I'm so sorry! Is he… alive?" I regretted it as soon as I heard the question leave my mouth, but she looked undeterred, like the answer gave her hope.

"Yes, we're pretty sure. But he could be hurt, hungry. We just know that Elizabeth and her husband James had him and took him. She called Carlisle a week later from a pay phone and told him that she had him and that we would never find them. She was right," Alice looked down.

I gasped. "Wait… Edward… Edward Cullen! Of course, I heard about it on the news! Oh, Alice, I'm so sorry."

"Thanks, Bella. You really have no idea how perfect you are for us, what you did to make it better," I opened my mouth to protest, but she wouldn't have it, "We'll talk more tomorrow. Why don't we just go to bed?"

I could see how tired she was. "Sounds good Alley-Cat. Maybe I'll even make you my special Cereal Stew," I whispered, trying to make her feel better. She smiled, and that was enough.

That night, I had my first nightmare about Batman.

BPOV June 20, 2007

My eyes opened to an empty room. I heard the noises of someone cooking downstairs. A golden light that I had always loved was filtering into the room, throwing light off of dust particles.

I stepped down the stairs thinking about what Alice told me last night. I finally knew the secret they had been keeping for months. Every odd gesture or glare could be explained. But I wanted to know why the sadness was reaching a peak now.

On the wall, I noticed a picture I had always over-looked, thinking it was some far off cousin. It was never dusty like the other ones. It was a picture of a boy looking breathtakingly happy. He looked to be around my age. He was in pajamas standing next to a baby grand piano. I realized this was the piano downstairs. With a shock, I finally connected the dots. This must be Edward. I blushed, remembering thinking that the boy in the picture was cute.

I looked towards the kitchen. I decided not to mention him today. This family was to kind to have to be sad. They didn't deserve this hurt, and I would do everything I could to keep them happy.

When I reached the entrance to the kitchen, no one noticed. Emmett, Jasper, and Rosalie were sitting around the table looking lost. Alice was standing by the big window with her arms crossed, searching for him, just like she did before. Esme was busying herself in cooking breakfast for the first time in a while. I noticed she was baking too. Oddly enough, I thought I smelled chocolate. Carlisle was sitting on a stool by the island, glaring at his coffee cup.

Everyone looked so immersed in what they were doing; I didn't want to make a sound. But of course, walking away, I stubbed my toe.

"Ow!" I cried without thinking, raising my poor foot to inspect the damage.

I remembered what I had interrupted and slowly looked up. They were all staring at me, shocked. Emmett was the first to laugh. Soon we were all laughing to tears. At least my tears were from laughing. I wasn't so sure about everyone else's.

I brushed the moment off and nonchalantly walked into the kitchen pantry that was larger than my bedroom at home. I met Esme's eyes and asked permission. She smiled and nodded, turning off the burner on the stove. She had only made the bacon and toast, a perfect unhealthy accompany meant to my already sugary meal.

I could feel them looking at me as I emerged with three cereal boxes, a carton of strawberries, and three bananas balanced in my arms.

Emmett jumped up and fist pumped the air. "Cereal Stew! Cereal Stew, Cereal Stew, Cereal Stew!"

I rolled my eyes. "Emmett, you could make this whenever you want to, there's no magic ingredient I add. Except for the magic mushrooms," I said seriously while arranging the 5 bowls on the counter. Four were average sized bowls, one was a salad bowl.

"Ah, I wish that actually _was_ an ingredient so I could explain the high I get while eating it! It's not the same without your loving hand mixing the exact combination of brands and perfect amount of milk," he said dreamily.

I simply rolled my eyes as I washed the strawberries, cutting off the top and slicing them in half. Then I scooped a half cup of Frosted Flakes into each bowl, giving Emmett's salad bowl another cup. Then I eyeballed the Cheerios and Fruit Loops. Placing just enough in the bowl to leave the taste, but not overpower anything. After adding the milk, I sprinkled strawberries and bananas on top.

I fixed two extra bowls of a different cereal I had pre-made and put into a cereal container for Carlisle and Esme. It was a mix of granola clusters, raisins, Chex cereal, and the occasional chocolate Cheerio.

I set the bowls in front of everyone around the breakfast table, while Esme filled glasses and plates with buttered toast and bacon.

"We were blessed with the two finest chefs in the history of man-kind," Carlisle said sweetly, gaining everyone's quick agreement.

"I don't think this breakfast really displays our cooking talents, but thank you," Esme said winking at me. I raised my eyebrows conspiringly.

We were a cooking team, even though now she barely cooked at all. My tiny cooking talent thrilled Esme when she found out, seeing as her kids could barely use the toaster.

After we had a quiet breakfast, Esme took a long, deep sigh, making every one look at her. She was only looking at me. Her hair was gleaming in the orange morning light.

"So, Bella dear, I heard you finally know about Edward." She said, only looking at me not paying attention to anyone else in the room.

Everyone's forks dropped and clattered to the plates. Obviously, no one ever talked about this. Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie looked shocked that I knew. I think Rosalie even looked a little mad. Carlisle was looking inquisitively at Esme, but she wouldn't look at him, only me. I didn't want to be the reason for everyone's distress.

"It's okay; you don't have to talk about it," I said to her quietly.

Esme interrupted me with a tiny smile, "That's sweet honey, but its okay. Today is my son's birthday. I think it fits to talk about him at least a little." Her smile melted away slowly. She looked deeply depressed despise the lightness of her words.

I raised my eye brows and understood the chocolate aroma immediately. Cake.

"I know you don't realize it Bella, but you are a huge part of this family. You are my daughter as much as Rosalie and even Alice. You took away so much pain…" she trailed off, looking at everyone. They all nodded and I blushed. I wanted to wave it off, I had done nothing special, but she continued.

"It's been the hardest year of my life. Right now, it hurts more because the anniversary of him boarding that flight just passed. And because it's his birthday. That's two in a row he's missed." She swallowed heavily.

I noticed everyone was crying, though quietly. _Everyone. _Including Emmett. Seeing his usually-happy face streaked with tears tore at my heart.

"I miss him so much. It's like he was just the most amazing dream ever," Rosalie said, wiping her nose. A single black drop fell down her cheek.

Carlisle dug the heels of his palms into his eyes.

Emmett looked up. "What do you think he's doing right at this moment?" he asked.

"I'd like to think he's blowing candles out for his birthday," Jasper said.

Alice smiled toward him. "Chocolate on chocolate, of course."

"Or maybe he's playing piano, writing another song," Esme offered.

"Knowing you guys, I have no doubt in my mind that he's thinking of all of you," I said firmly. Everyone looked at me and smiled.

Carlisle looked around the table, "Of course."

**Thank you so much for reading!**


	6. What Are You Looking For?

**A/N- Hello! I am aware that this chapter isn't on Twilighted yet, and I'm not too worried about it. Just didn't want to keep you guys waiting :)**

EPOV June 16, 2010

Clean linen, roses, and childhood. That's what the house smelled like. When I pushed open the door, I realized just how much I didn't belong there. It was too much.

The dirt on my boots couldn't wait to dirty Esme's pearly white carpet. I hastily pushed them off and stepped aside to let them in, embarrassed at how long I had been standing there. Esme still had tears in her eyes and was clutching onto Carlisle's arm.

I raised a hand to the back of my neck and rubbed, letting out a huge breath. My eyes stung.

Carlisle smiled and shook his head in disbelief. _Stop being so goddamn happy to see me_, I internally begged him.

"We've waited for this day for four excruciatingly long years. You have no idea how happy we are."

He gently grabbed my shoulder and led me into the family room. On the way there I caught a glimpse of my piano in the music room. I flexed my fingers, trying to remember the last time I had played. Carlisle noticed.

"You will be able to play all you want. Let's just talk."

Shit. I hate talking.

Esme sat down on the couch and I followed her. Carlisle sat on his lazy boy across from us. She reached over placed her hand on my cheek, "Edward, sweetheart. How are you? Really. Don't lie." She was searching my eyes, but I knew she would never find what she was looking for.

I took in my surroundings again, feeling like I was in a dream. "As of now, I'm okay, I think. Just tired maybe. I don't know."

I couldn't actually explain. They would think I was crazy. Right now, I'm supposed to be joyously happy. Jumping around and crying and hugging, but I just can't bring myself to do it. Some where deep down, I might be happy. Mostly, I'm just tired and shaky. I really want to play my fucking piano.

"You don't have to talk about it right if you don't want to. But I want to know what happened," Carlisle said seriously.

My body went rigid. The Walls were constructed expertly, as they had slowly resided with the assault of memories. I rubbed a hand over my face, shaking my head while my fingers covered my eyes. I didn't want to look them in the eyes. How could I tell them without admitting what I am?

Esme got my point, "Of course, that will wait. Right now, your home and that's all that matters. I will go make brunch, you must be starving." She had no idea.

Carlisle was still studying me, most likely wondering what the hell was wrong with me. I really want to be happy, but I just can't care. After Esme cleared her throat, he looked away and stood up. He went to follow her, but turned around.

"Aren't you going to play now?"

I opened my mouth to respond somehow but he was gone. I stood up, still shaking, and walked through the kitchen to the music room. Something was sizzling on the oven. I didn't look, but could see Esme and Carlisle at the island, looking at me.

After _they _took me, I remember drawing keys on my yellow sheets with sharpie. If James knew, he would kick the shit out of me. When they weren't home or sleeping, I would get on my knees and play, hearing beautiful things that no one else could.

But that was in the early months. After moving around so much, I lost my piano sheets.

I felt myself walk up to the bench and sit down. It was hard and cold. I said a silent hello, and immediately felt like a dumbass. I shook my head and took a deep breath.

My hands were miraculously steady, a trait I had gained in the last couple years. I flexed my fingers. Every one of them was dirty, and I saw blood on a couple of my knuckles. I scrubbed them on my jeans until they were pink and raw. My fingers hovered over the keys for a brief moment. They wouldn't go down. I couldn't push them down.

I don't know how long I sat there, staring at nothing and not playing. I knew Esme was watching me, and I wanted to play so bad for her. I knew what I had to do, the son she wanted was gone, but I could try to imitate what he wrote. I dived into her favorite song.

The next thing I knew, she was sitting on the bench with me. "I almost forgot how it went. Thank you so much." She was crying and I felt uncomfortable because I didn't deserve her praise.

"Edward…" she began slowly, "I think I should tell you that the kids will be here any minute. They… don't know about you being here. Just be prepared for whatever… okay sweetheart?" She stared at me for another minute or so, while I awkwardly averted my eyes.

I knew she was telling me that if they don't like me anymore, I should be prepared. Or if they think I'm a homeless, serial killing, motorcyclist, don't be alarmed.

She nodded and got up and I was lost again. I'm sure it was expected of me to play Clair De Lune. It was my favorite piece to play. It had been so long, but I knew it by heart and began to play it right away.

I played it loudly, soaking it up, until I heard a car engine. Doors slammed. My vision blurred and started shaking. Jesus, get a hold of yourself Masen. Cullen. Damnit.

But I only stumbled over a few notes, until I was back on track playing much more quietly, so I could hear. Outside the front door, I heard laughter. A lot of it. The sound was odd; I can't remember the last time I really laughed.

"Well Jelly Belly, knitting is a great way to relieve stress." said a booming voice right outside the door. Emmett. Emmett, Emmett, Emmett.

The lock clicked. I never stopped playing. I was getting to my favorite part.

"You could have rejected him a little nicer. It was kind of harsh.," a girl defended, but she sounded like she was smiling. I didn't know the voice. Someone new? Or maybe I was just a big enough asshole that I forgot my own sister's voice.

The door opened. There was a storm of footsteps.

"I know! He was crushed. Did you see his face? Man, that guy has it _bad_ for you!" No, that was definently Alice.

"Seriously, Newton's asked you out, what, fifty times this week?" Rosalie said. I pressed a little harder on my keys. It was all too real.

Everyone laughed again. Suddenly, no one was laughing.

"What the _hell_ is that?" Alice asked quietly. I realized I had been playing to loud. I stopped.

"It-it must have been Carlisle. He can play a little. Maybe it was a CD?" I heard Rose suggest without feeling.

I saw Carlisle walk past me, smiling, going towards the door. Esme was right behind him, with wet tears on her face. "When you're ready," she whispered.

I bit my tongue and tasted blood. They entered the room my League was standing in. It was so goddamn _weird_ for everyone I loved to be in the same room, so close to me. It was even odder to admit I loved them. I had been telling myself not to love them for so long; I think I needed to learn how again.

"Oh, it was just you Daddy," Alice said, sounding uptight.

There was a pause, and I knew Esme was about to say something. I couldn't stand the wait, so I stood up. I sat back down. Then stood up again, internally calling myself a pussy. I walked out before I could convince myself not to. My fists were so tight my knuckles cracked.

The first thing I saw was Emmett McCarty. Naturally, he was huge, much bigger than me. He fit the name Superman. He was a couple inches taller and had bigger muscles, but he looked clumsier. I was horrified when I realized I had sized him up, like I was going to fight him.

I didn't deserve them. I should go and never come back.

He had his arm around a hot blonde girl. I quickly figured out it was Rosalie. Christ. They were together? She looked like a model with her long hair and legs. I didn't really expect anything less though.

Then Jasper, who was tall and skinny and longish blonde hair, looked exactly the same. I looked at Alice and realized they were connected. She was clutching onto his hand so tight I thought it would break off. I glared at their hands. What was that supposed to mean? Of course, I don't have the right to be the big brother anymore. Alice's hair was shorter. She hadn't grown much and looked puny next to Jasper. We didn't look related at all. Good.

Carlisle was right. Things had definitely changed.

I shoved my hand through my hair, extremely uncomfortable and not looking anyone in the eyes. Something clattered to the floor. It was Alice's designer sunglasses. She breathed out a single word.

"Batman."

I winced, feeling the pain in my chest when Alice said it, but I looked at her. Then she flew at me. She jumped into my arms and locked her legs around my waist. She was holding onto me for dear life. I slowly put my arms around her and squeezed gently. I was sick of all these fucking emotions. Tears just would not come, making me feel even more out of place.

But this was Alice, Black Canary, my fucking sister. So I squeezed her harder, which was really all I could do. I could hear her sobbing into my shoulder. There was not another sound in the world, until she spoke.

"God, Edward. Are you real?" she asked childishly, pulling her head back to look at me, but I still felt way to unworthy to look into her eyes. I just stared at the wall or her shiny black hair.

"I think so. Are you?" I asked seriously.

She let out a giant sob and leaned into my shoulder. I remembered the rest of the League.

I gently put Alice down. She was way to light.

I looked at everyone else. Jasper had tears in his eyes, which made me feel like a complete douche bag. I was the only one who wasn't crying. He looked into my eyes, and I couldn't stand it.

"Well, what the hell happened to you?" he asked. He was covering up a much larger question. The question everyone wanted to know and the one I wanted no one to know.

I shrugged helplessly and looked down. I looked up when I felt a finger on my chin. It was Rosalie. She raised her hand and I knew she was about to smack me. I closed my eyes and welcomed it, knowing I deserved much worse.

But it never came. Instead I smelt vanilla all over me, and she threw her hands around my neck. She was crying too hard to say anything. She pulled away wiping away some of her tears, but she was crying so fiercely it was impossible to get all of them at a time.

They were all just staring at me. I heard Emmett suck in a breath to say something so I looked up at him.

"Holy hobo, Batman," he said quietly. Everyone looked shocked at his words, but I found myself laughing at them. It wasn't real, happy laughter. It was dry and ironic. Then they looked, shocked, at me. They didn't know that I had said that exact same thing to my reflection this morning.

I stopped laughing when I remembered that a homeless murderer was exactly what I was.

Then a beeper went off, making everyone jump but me. Esme sniffled and wiped her cheeks.

"Brunch is done. Let's go eat. Together," she said relishing in the words. Then I felt two little hands slide into my own. To my left was Alice and to my right was Rosalie. They smiled watery smiles.

"We aren't letting go," Rosalie said. I squeezed their hands, getting a brief flashback of a game of Red Rover.

They pulled me into their kitchen.

"Oh, we're going to need an extra chair," Alice said. Her voice was wavering.

"No, no, no Alice. I'm leaving, you guys should be alone," said the unidentified voice from earlier. I shifted my body to see her, and quickly turned away. Of course, she was abso-fucking-lutely gorgeous.

"Isabella Swan, I would be severely disappointed in you if you left us now," Rose said, dropping my hand, "this is your family too."

So she was a replacement. I didn't blame them. She was reeking of innocence and perfection, the complete opposite of me. They obviously don't need me anymore. I'm sure they'll realize that soon. There was an awkward silence that Alice quickly interrupted.

"Well Bat- I mean _Edward- _this is our best friend, Isabella Swan. Bella, this is my brother, Edward," Alice absolutely glowed when she said this and I was hit with more guilt.

I looked at the girl, Bella, and gave a brief nod of acknowledgment.

"It's... great to meet you Edward, but really I should give you this moment of privacy," she said.

Esme put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. "You are too sweet Bella. Please stay, and eat something. Our family wouldn't be complete with you missing now would it?"

Bella smiled at my mother and hugged her. "Well, I guess I can. But only if you're sure its okay…" She might have looked at me when she said this, but I was pretending to be interested in the wood finish on the floor.

"Can we eat now please, I'm freakin' starving," Emmett said impatiently. He kept shooting me glances, just like everyone else.

There were murmurs of uninterested agreement and Alice and Rosalie took my rough, dirty hands in their perfect ones again, and led me to the kitchen. Everyone sat down at the circular breakfast table. Alice was on my right, then Jasper, then a seat for Esme, Bella, Carlisle, Emmett, and Rosalie was on my left. I couldn't help but wonder why Bella was sitting in between my parents.

Esme filled our plates with eggs, bacon, fruit, and buttered toast. Everyone got a glass of ice water and a glass of orange juice. Bella whispered something to Esme, and she visibly shined from her words, thanking her.

They quietly started eating, not knowing what to say. But I didn't touch my food, just stared at it. I couldn't remember the last time I ate other then the burger from the flight. I usually ate whatever I could find with the little amount of money I had, if I had any. This mostly equaled boxes of off-brand macaroni and cheese that was unsettlingly orange.

It was pathetic, but I felt like I was in a dream. I bit my lip not sure what to do. I knitted my eyebrows together and tilted my head a little still glaring at my food. My steaming, delicious, food.

Out of the corner of my eye I could see people chewing slowly and looking from me, to my plate, to the person sitting next to them, wondering what the hell I was doing.

Feeling like a freak, and anxious to get rid of the empty feeling inside of me, I raised my hand and picked up my toast, took a tiny bit, and swallowed without chewing, hating myself the whole time.

How the fuck am I going to make it if I can't even eat with them? What are they going to ask me? Are they going to demand I tell them everything, and be exactly the old me? What is going to happen when they realize that I've changed and they don't want to look at me anymore?

I remember being 13 and the only thing I wanted in the world was to be back with my family, and to forget any of this ever happened. Now the only thing I was is to get away from them and the wasted kindness, unnecessary love, and their goddamn happiness.

I realized I had been griping my fork a little too hard and had attracted Rosalie's and Emmett's full attention. I sighed and took a drink of the delicious water, remembering the yellow-tinged water that seemed to be a trademark of every apartment/hotel we stayed in.

"Are you okay sweetheart?" Esme asked. It took me a moment to realize she was talking to me.

I pushed the words that bubbled to my lips away. I wanted to tell her to never fucking call me that again. I was far from sweet and my heart was… my heart was just dead. But instead I said, "I'm fine. Really," in that same low, gruff voice. I hated the way I sounded.

She was quiet after that, and everyone took care not to look at me. I could tell they were just dying to ask questions. Today must have been extremely confusing and surprising for them, but all I felt was tired. More old and tired then I had ever felt.

By the time everyone had finished and was holding their stomachs, I had just finished my toast and some fruit and was quite full. My stomach wasn't used to large amounts of food. Esme stood and started taking everyone's plates. When she got to me, she looked concerned. I just nodded and looked away, my failure nearly crushing me.

Nobody else stood up, and for some reason they weren't looking at me anymore. I was grateful, but didn't understand it. They were sharing secret glances with each other, reminding me how out of the loop I was. But the oddest part was how they kept looking toward Bella like they were lost, as if for some sort of guidance.

My head was downcast facing the table but I snuck a glance at her. She really was fucking cute.

**A/N- Well there you go! Thank you so much for reading, reviews are cherished and I always reply. **

**PS - If you happen to be a Beta reading this and your interested, I need you, so let's talk :)**


	7. That Home

**A/N- Hello, and I'll just start off with an apology. I'm sorry about the lack of updates, and my excuses probably aren't good enough. School starting has been stressful and plenty of other personal issues got in the way. I could never just leave this story, so I will continue to update, but they might be a little irregular. Also, I've taken this story off of Twilighted, because I feel like it would be easier to manage The Lost Hero if it was only posted on one site. Once again, I'm sorry, and I hope you like this chapter. **

EPOV

That afternoon was filled with awkwardness. Let's Make Edward Comfortable was the only thing on their minds. Pillow fluffing and countless refused refreshments spotted the silence while we sat in the living room. Alice would try small talk, and it was certainly very small. She was just about to open her mouth to comment on the weather when the phone rang.

Carlisle's hand was there in a flash. "Cullen Residence…Oh yes, hello…" He looked at me oddly. There was a long list of people I didn't want calling the house. Blood rushed out of my face. How would someone get this number?

"Right… Yes Mr. Lyons I see the importance…" My tense shoulders fell. Oh joy, it was him. "As soon as is possible… Alright, I'll talk to you later then. Have a nice day." He hung up the phone, looking reluctant.

Everyone was staring at him, but he was looking at me. "Edward, word is traveling fast; the police expect that by tomorrow, we'll have reporters in out yard."

I couldn't believe that I was subjecting them to this. I buried my face in my hands. "I'm sorry Carlisle."

It was silent. I looked up to find everyone staring at me like I had three fucking heads. Isabella was the only one smiling, and it was tiny and reeking of sympathy. I raised my eyebrows, having no idea what was going on and why they looked so shocked. "I really am sorry…" I mumbled.

Carlisle looked at me sharply. "Edward, I don't think you understand. You have absolutely nothing to be sorry for. What on Earth is making you feel so _guilty_? We are the ones who should be guilty. I have no idea what you've been through, but none of it is your fault. You _must_ know that." He spoke incredulously. Then his face turned much sadder. "And please Edward, call me Dad."

As soon as he opened his mouth, I was gently shaking my head back and forth. He didn't understand. I had everything to feel guilty for. I realized I called him Carlisle. That explains all of the looks.

"Edward what I'm trying to say, is that you have to tell the police everything that happened. I understand if you don't want to tell us right now…But the public wants to know what's going on…the police want you to go down to the station to give an official statement. You can do it alone or one of us can go in there with you."

Obviously, I really didn't want to fucking do it with cops, let alone my family. My stomach never failed to clench on that word. I opened my mouth, trying to think of a way to let them down easily, as if I was a disappointment enough.

Esme understood, like she always does. "Its okay sweetheart, it will happen in time." She said gently. I wasn't so sure about that, but I nodded. "Why don't we clean you up first. Emmett, go get some of your clothes. Edward, you can take a shower in your room." She looked at Alice and told her to bring the soaps and shampoo and everything else I would need from her and Carlisle's bathroom.

I shook my head, "You guys really don't have to do all that, I'm okay…" I trailed off, feeling like one hell of an intrusion.

Esme wouldn't have it. She had excitement in her eyes. I let her pull me off the couch. I towered over her. She looked at Isabella. "Bella, take Edward up to his room. I'm going to get the hair cutter and trimmer."

Jasper and Carlisle stood up for reasons I didn't know, leaving me and 'Bella' alone. She had a slight flush illuminating her face and she bit on her bottom lip.

"Right…um, let's go." She pointed to the stairs. The walk was slow, silent. We reached the top of the stairs. I paused at Alice's door, decorated with signs and pictures. I looked closer, and I saw a picture of the League and I was in it. It was like a whole other person. I looked so happy. And naïve. Pretty much the same thing in my book.

Bella realized I had stopped so she came back towards me, trying to find what I was looking at. She tilted her head a little.

"They love you so much. You should hear the way Alice talks about you… For as long as I've known them, I can honestly say that I've never seen them so happy. Thank you."

I looked at her harshly, wondering what she was thanking me for.

She blushed at my glare, and looked away. "I can see the pain on your face, I don't know why, but this is hard for you. I guess I'm just saying thanks for going through it. For them."

I didn't say anything, but I was mildly surprised she saw any pain at all. I was professional at masking emotions. Reading people is my thing, yet I was struggling with her.

She started walking again and paused at the next door. The Headquarters. On the front of the wood door were two big blue letters 'HQ.' My feet moved me away from the door and down the small hallway with my room in it. I was not ready for that especially with a girl I had just met.

With a longing to be alone, my long strides became to fast for Bella. I paused outside my door to wait for her, though I didn't know why. There wasn't a single thing on my door, besides a sticker of a piano I got from the doctor's office once. Esme wasn't happy, complaining about never being able to get it off without peeling paint.

I turned to Bella who looked like she was internally fighting with herself. She turned away, and then turned back. She finally opened her mouth.

"If you notice things are out of order, or like…um…gone," she cleared her throat, "ah…sorry. Sometimes I slept in your room if we had a sleep-over…" She said guiltily.

"Not a big deal." Was all I could think to say. We stood there in awkward silence until Alice came rushing up the stairs. She was carrying to much stuff for her tiny frame. I took the towels from her. They were so fluffy and soft. The simple things really got to me; I had forgotten that I had always used a scratchy dish towel, if anything, to dry off.

Alice looked… jumpy. "Okay, so here's shampoo, body wash, soap, razors, shaving cream, after shave, a sponge, and deodorant." She handed me all of the spoken, unneeded shower accessories in what looked like a basket. "That's your shower rack." She said, "And these are some of Emmet's older clothes. Esme said not to completely dry your hair, so she can cut it." She looked quickly at Bella, smiling. When I looked at her, she was blushing deeply.

"Okay…" Alice said, now looking at me. Her expression told me she was checking a list in her head. "Are you all set?"

I looked at the things in my hands. "Yeah, thanks. You didn't have to,"

"But we did," she interrupted me, pulling Bella down the hallway with her.

And finally, I was alone. I turned the knob of my door with the tips of my fingers. My hands were quite full. The rest of my house felt like a strangers, but my room felt like home. My CDs greeted me and books applauded at my entrance. My eyes ventured toward my bed and I noticed that one of my black pillows was missing.

I walked into my bathroom and set all of the things down on the counter. It took me a while to figure out the damn shower hangy-rack-thingy. I hastily shoved the shampoo and body wash in it. I grabbed the soap. Who uses body wash _and_ soap? Surely no one could be that filthy. _Except for you of course_, I told myself. I slipped the little white bar of soap in there too.

I couldn't wait to be scrubbed free of the dirt. I was hoping the guilt would come with it, but I knew better. I ripped off the uncomfortable clothes and started the shower. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror then turned to examine my body thoroughly. I usually avoid looking at myself. The self hatred in my eyes made me wince.

I steered away from my own eyes and looked at my naked body. Peeling off the bandage on my head was difficult. When it was gone I saw a nasty scrape surrounded by black bruising. Flashes of gun shots and yells were thrown at me. I remember being slammed head first into the cement floor. That must have been how I got it. There was a purple bruise on my jaw from where James had hit me the morning before. It was slightly hidden from a week of not being able to shave.

Three circular scars dotted my arm, where Elizabeth had put out her cigarette. There was one the other arm where I had put out mine. Faint bruises cover my ribs, which I'm sure was James' doing. I remembered that day, though most blurred together. It was the first and last time I ever fought back.

He underestimated my strength and I underestimated his. Something about my attitude pissed him off and he took my neck in one of his hands, choking me. When he let go, I punched him as hard as I could. He was stunned and I wasn't going to wait for him to snap out of it. I punched him again in the face, and he caught my hand in his fist squeezing it until I heard something pop. The rest of it involved him kicking me on the floor.

Any other bruise on my body was from the night before. Shit, was it honestly only one night ago? I realized that I was in pretty bad shape. It surprised me the medic didn't take me in.

The steam soon made it impossible to see myself as something other then a hazy outline, so I tried to forget all of my other scars. I slowly walked into the shower and couldn't help closing my eyes as the hot water hit me. I rolled my neck forward letting the water massage me and I saw brown water going down the drain.

I took the soft sponge and completely it covered in the blue body wash. I scrubbed my skin raw. When I couldn't bear the pain any longer, I scrubbed for another five minutes. Then I decided I couldn't get any physically cleaner. I rinsed my body, and then went over it again with the bar of soap.

I pooled the syrupy shampoo into my palm and dug into my scalp. A bit of the shampoo touched my wound so I rinsed my hair. Then washed it again.

I remembered that everyone downstairs was probably waiting for me. I shut off the water and quickly dried off. I only gave my hair a quick shake in the towel, leaving it a complete mess. My skin was red from the water and scrubbing. I pulled on the clean boxers on after a moment of hesitation. Then pulled on the pants and found that they fit alright. I cleared the fog in the mirror and hurriedly shaved.

After the grey t-shirt was on, I walked into my room which was freezing compared to the bathroom. The silence comforted me. I sat on my bed running a hand through my slick hair. I remembered the black pillow that was missing. Bella had said… but why the hell would she want a pillow? I'm sure I had money in here some where. The thought of wallets and their contents assaulted me.

I sighed again and made my way downstairs. I stopped at the balcony that over looked the living room. Bella was staring out the sliding glass door that led to out backyard. Her arms were crossed and I couldn't see her face. Her thick hair was falling down her back, and I turned my head to stop myself from looking any lower.

There had been plenty of girls. I had never been respectful towards them, what made her so different? My being ungentlemanly obviously wasn't a turn off seeing as it got me laid numerous times.

When I was younger James would enroll me in schools under fake names. When he was satisfied I wasn't turning retarded, he kept me home most days. I would go back to school to take the tests and pass the grade. Suddenly I was grateful for that. I had never felt gratitude towards them, but now that they were dead I realized that even though they did shitty things, they did some good things too. At least I wouldn't have to go into middle school at 17 years old.

At the high schools, girls nearly wet themselves when I walked into the room. Who was I to say no to them? I lost my virginity when I was 14 and a half.

Emmett walked into view poking Bella in the ribs. She turned towards him. "What was that for?"

"Just wanted to converse with my Jelly Belly. I can't even wrap my head around what's going on. After all those years of hope…" He trailed off. "You know that first day? When you rang the door bell? I had this weird feeling in my stomach and I thought I just _knew_ it was Edward. Of course it was just you, dirtying our porch with blood." He said offhandedly.

Bella smiled softly. "I remember. Stupid freakishly long twigs. It was the trees fault I swear, it saw me and thought 'Lets eff-up this girls day.' Well jokes on them. Their stupid twigs helped me meet you guys." She rambled.

Emmett rolled his eyes. "Gosh Bella, I thought you were the smart one. Trees don't _think_." I couldn't tell if he was being serious or not but he walked away shaking his head. Bella gaped but laughed. I almost wanted to also. She walked off towards the kitchen, shaking her head.

My feet took me down the stairs and into the kitchen. Everyone was there waiting for me. Rosalie's mouth popped open and Alice smiled wide. Everyone else looked surprised. I'm guessing that I looked a little different.

"Alright, let's see what we can do about your hair." She gestured for me to sit down as she placed a black cape around me to keep the hair off. I never let anyone but Esme cut my hair. I felt her motherly hands on my head and I just kind of zoned out, letting her do whatever she wanted to.

Finally, I heard. "There. That looks so much better!" Alice stepped in front of me, inspecting my hair. Without saying anything she walked lightly to Bella and whispered something in her hair that made her turn scarlet.

I stood up slowly. Carlisle walked over to me with something shiny in his hand.

"We figured you'd need a cell phone, so here you go. Unless you already have one..." Carlisle said, trying not to look too curious.

I thought back to the numerous cellular devices I had acquired over the years. All pre-paid and impossible to track. The last one was at our 'apartment' in Boston.

"Ah, no, I don't have one. But I really don't need one honestly," I said.

Carlisle shook his head, "Just take this, and also," He reached into his pocket, "here are your keys. One for the Volvo, the Mercedes, and the house."

I took the phone and the key ring wordlessly. The room was silent, and I had no idea how to make an exit. After a minute of awkward glances, I took a deep breath and quickly walked towards the door. I didn't notice Alice was following me until I opened the door and couldn't close it behind me.

"I'm scared if I let you out of my sight, you'll disappear again," she said quietly, "please come home as soon as possible."

I remembered what I was leaving to do in the first place, "Believe me, I will."

**Thank you so much for reading, and sticking with me :)**


	8. Where Have You Been?

**A/N- Here you go my loves! **

BOV June 17, 2010

I paused on the front steps, basking in the rare, warm sunlight. I felt Alice brush past me. Orange was all I knew behind my lids and I had the distinct feeling that today was going to be a good day, probably because of the weather. It seemed like a perfect place to do my daily prayer for Edward. I didn't tell anyone else that I prayed for his safety and his return home, because obviously it didn't work.

Plus, I don't think 'prayer' is the right word for it, because there is no religious meaning behind it. Its mostly just a couple words I say in my head. But before I could start Emmett honked his horn.

"Let's get it poppin' Swan!" He yelled. The music in the car was blaring at full volume. I opened my eyes, ignoring the pain of the bright sun. Emmett was hanging out of his Jeep with one arm around Rosalie. Alice had jumped right in Jasper's lap.

The feeling of being a fifth wheel was only slight. When Emmett first asked Rosalie out, I was shocked. I had never thought of them as more then friends. Alice and Jasper were a completely different story. There never was an announcement or question; their relationship had always been present in some form.

Both couples were perfect for each other. I couldn't help but wonder what _he_ would think.

I jumped in the back seat next to the mass that was Jasper/Alice. Rosalie turned the radio down with her perfectly manicured nails.

"Well, what's on the agenda?" She asked turning her body to face the back seat. At some time in the last couple of years I had acquired the position of Mom. Only when Esme wasn't around of course.

"Well I was planning on going to Port Angeles and have lunch or go swimming on the pier, but Esme insisted we be home around one for some sort of surprise. So I guess we have to go to First Beach."

Emmett turned the radio back up and attempted turning around, destroying a few of Esme's flowers in the process.

Jasper rolled his eyes, "The person who passed you in Driver's Ed. should be fired. Immediately."

"Well the person who passed you in Awesome Class should be fired. Immediately."

The girls laughed. But Jasper kept going.

"Ha! We all know that if there _was_ an Awesome Class, I would be valedictorian."

This continued for the rest of the drive.

We pulled into the nearly full parking lot. The beach was crowded with kids playing Frisbee and girls lying in the sun. Everyone was making use of the beautiful weather. Rosalie and Alice leaped out of the Jeep shredding off there clothes to reveal there bathing suits underneath. As soon as they were undressed they ran for the water.

"Come on Bella!" They yelled, but I stayed behind. The confidence that radiated off of them was something I never had. I was okay with playing Frisbee with the younger kids because it seemed that everyone was as clumsy as I was in the sand.

"Do you guys need help?" I asked Emmett and Jasper, because they obviously did. My question was more directed to the swimming donuts that circled Emmett's neck, covering his face.

Without replying Jasper stacked five towels into my hands and hooked a bag full of sunscreen to my pinkie. Rolling my eyes, I made my way towards Rosalie and Alice. They pulled the things out of my hands, letting most of the towels fall to the ground.

Rosalie squirted oily stuff that smelled like coconuts into her hand then passed it to Alice. As they lathered it on their skin I peeled off my blue shirt leaving my in my jean shorts and my one-piece bathing suit underneath.

I found the massive form of Emmett among a group of pre-teens already in an intense game of tackle football. I ran up to his team's huddle.

"Can I join in?" I asked.

Emmett looked me up and down, assessing me. "I guess, but the other team is gonna need you more."

I looked to the other teams huddle and found them already looking at me. Mixed in with the 13 year olds was Mike Newton, fitting in very well.

"He's right, we do need you more." Mike shouted with a smile. I sighed and started towards them, turning to glare at Emmett more than once.

Two hours, three football games, a round of tag, and a race to the water later, I was being held in the air by Emmett, whose goal was to drop me in the water. In the midst of kicking and struggling I heard Alice call my name.

"Its one, we have to go!" She yelled.

I looked at my captor. "You heard what she said, let me go, you ape."

He sighed but set me down in the sand. Right in front of Mike.

"Bella! Hey I was wondering if you were doing anything tonight?" He said uncertainly.

Emmett didn't even try to hide his laugh. He hooked his arms heavily across my shoulders. "Yeah she's busy. We have this really important knitting thing we have to attend. Invitation only, sorry." Then he dragged me away, leaving Mike stunned.

The smile on my face couldn't be helped. "Really Emmett? Knitting?"

We stopped at the Hale's house on the way back because we had some time to spare. We all took five minute showers to get the sand and sweat off and changed into clean clothes.

The drive to the House with the top down dried the hair that Alice didn't get with a blow-dryer. Out of no where Alice squealed.

"Ohmygod! That's the surprise! Look!" I followed the direction of her pointing finger and saw the car. It was sleek and shiny and expensive looking.

"But who would she buy a car for?" I asked incredulously. Emmett had the Jeep, Jasper had his huge pick up, Rosalie had her BMW, Alice had her Audi, and I had my truck.

"Um, the answer to that question is obvious! Plus, your birthday is only two months away. It's so perfect for you Bella!" Alice crooned.

I was shocked. There was no way they would by me a car! Would they?

"Alice tell them to take it back, I can't possibly accept this. Way too much," The words rushed out of my mouth before she pressed a finger to my lips.

"Nobody talk about it. Pretend we didn't see it. We have to be all surprised and stuff. Talk about Mike, I saw you reject him."

Emmett didn't need to be told twice. We were soon all engaged in the conversation.

We entered the house laughing loudly.

"Seriously, Newton's asked you out, what, fifty times this week?" Rosalie said.

We started to laugh, but every single one of us stopped suddenly. The loud sound of the piano being played interrupted us. No one and I mean _no one_, touched the piano. Except for cleaning it, which was my job.

"What the _hell_ is that?" Alice asked, but the beautiful noise had stopped.

Rosalie suggested something, but I wasn't paying attention because Esme and Carlisle entered the room.

I had never seen Esme look so happy. Something about her was absolutely glowing. Carlisle was standing straight and smiling like crazy.

"Oh, it was just you Daddy." Alice said, not really believing it.

Then time stopped. A tall figure walked into view. I immediately knew who it was. My mouth popped open and I heard everyone gasp. His fists were clenched to tight for him to be happy.

He was absolutely gorgeous and frightening at the same time. With a ratty tee shirt that was slightly too small for his large frame and dirty, ripped jeans, he looked like he had been through hell.

He had a very serious five o'clock shadow and his hair was kind of long and very untidy. Then, like he was reading my mind, his hand clutched his hair.

The sunglasses Alice was holding dropped to the floor, knocking me out of the stupor of Edward's Hair.

"Batman." She whispered.

He looked up at her with shocking green eyes that held pain. Alice ran at him and leaped into his arms. When he uncertainly put his arms around her, I could hear her cries of happiness.

I felt like I was intruding on their miracle. I couldn't begin to imagine what this meant to them.

He opened his mouth. "I think so. Are you?" He asked gravely, answering an unheard question. I felt tears prick my eyes at the reunion. His voice might've had something to do with it too.

I just stood there, the voices warping around me. I watched everyone's face, including Edward's. Seeing my family so... so complete brought tears to my eyes. The loud beep from the oven nearly made me scream. As they made their way to the kitchen, I slowly started to retreat to the door.

"Oh, we're going to need an extra chair," Alice said, looking back at me.

"No, no, no Alice. I'm leaving, you guys should be alone," I insisted, trying not to look at Edward.

"Isabella Swan, I would be severely disappointed in you if you left us now. This is your family too," Rose said sternly.

Thankfully before the silence got unbearably awkward, Alice saved me.

"Well Bat- I mean _Edward- _this is our best friend, Isabella Swan. Bella, this is my brother, Edward."

I smiled at Alice, knowing what those words meant to her. But when I turned to Edward, I knew they had the opposite affect on them. He looked uncomfortable as it was, and I did not want to make him more so.

"It's... great to meet you Edward, but really I should give you this moment of privacy," I said.

Esme easily persuaded me to eat with them, though I still felt resentment coming off Edward. Was he mad because I ruined his reunion with his family? Then again… he didn't look very cheerful in the first place…

Soon we were all seated with Esme's mouth watering food in front of us.

When Esme passed me, I pulled her down and whispered into her ear, "Momma, I love you. I can tell Edward does too, even though he's having a hard time showing it. Just wait." She stood straight, thanking me, and I smiled as she sat back down.

There was an awkward moment. We slowly started eating and it was incredibly hard not to look at Edward. I could tell everyone else was, but their reasons were more understandable.

I reached for the ketchup that was labeled 'Bella' and squirted a generous amount onto my plate, thanking the heavens that it didn't make any noise resembling a fart. I had ketchup with everything.

I could sense some of them looking at me. My eyes reached Jasper's in silent questioning. His eyes led mine to Edward. He looked like he was doing Trigonometry in his scrambled eggs. His stare was almost curious, like he didn't know what he was eating. Or not eating.

He suddenly reached for his toast and took a miniscule bite. My eyes were on his lips a little too long. _Gosh Bella. Pull yourself together; he has just seen his family for the first time in four years. The last thing he wants is the complication that is you. _

Esme said something that brought me back to reality. Edward looked like he was trying to repress anger when he replied.

"I'm fine. Really." He said with a rough masculine voice.

His clipped statement effectively ended any conversation that might have occurred. I watched everybody but Edward. Only because I was scared to get caught. And because I might not look away.

Someone would occasionally open there mouths to ask something, only to purse their lips and shake their heads, chickening out.

Soon Esme was expertly balancing everybody's plates in her arms. She paused briefly when she reached Edward's half-full plate, but took it when he nodded.

Everyone but Edward was now looking at me. Usually I knew what to do and say, but this time I was at a loss. We mutely communicated deciding on going to the family room and just sharing looks of incredulity.

Movement from the seat across the table caught my eye. Edward flashed a look at me, and then concentrated on the table.

He really was handsome.

**A/N- Thank you so much for reading, reviews please? **


	9. Shameful Metaphor

**A/N- I present to you, chapter 9 of The Lost Hero! Enjoy. **

EPOV

As I got in the car, I instantly knew it was the same model, an s60, although this was the 2010 version, not the '95. I shook my head, clearing images out of my head as I turned the key in the ignition. Looking back towards the house was a mistake, with everyone standing at the large window, watching me.

As soon as I turned out of the drive way, a though flashed through my head. Right now, I could leave. I could drive and drive and never look back. But almost instantly, I shot the thought down. I recalled Alice's face, and assumed she had thought of the same thing. So I continued towards the police station, somehow remembering exactly where it was. As I heard the gravel underneath my tires, I rejoiced, seeing no reporters. But there was a man standing out in front, who walked towards my car as soon as I cut the engine. I inhaled deeply, and stepped out.

"Edward Cullen?" I responded by shaking the hand he had placed in front of me. "Well it's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Chief Charlie Swan. I don't know if you remember me from your childhood, you never got in trouble. None of you kids ever did. Emmett has done some stupid things, but nothing serious," he laughed.

Great. Now this guy thinks I'm some angel child. I can't wait until here hears exactly what 'serious' things I've done. His laugh was short, and he seemed to read my mind.

"Now Edward," he said as he placed his hand on my back, leading me through the door that was plastered with 'Lost Cat' posters, "I know you've been through a lot, but we're going to take good care of you here in Forks." His hand felt heavy on my back.

The station was in a frenzy. There were FBI, Forks Police, and everything in between. Annoyance trickled through my skin, even more so when I spotted Lyons. These so called 'police officers' didn't even notice when I walked into the room. Charlie cleared his throat a couple times, but I couldn't resist the, "shut up!" that was pushing its way out of my mouth. Then it was silent.

Lyons pushed his way through the cops, boxes of donuts, and coffee. "Edward, great to see you again," more quietly, "don't worry; half of these guys are completely unnecessary. Just wanted to be part of the 'moment.'"

Charlie rolled his eyes, assuming he meant his local force.

Lyons continued, "Booker, Johnson, Krieger, Swan, and Cullen, follow me." My jaw tightened at his orders. I really fucking hated cops. I went last in the single file line to the back of the station, into a room straight from the movies.

It was medium sized, white, with a table and 4 chairs. And of course, there was a large mirror on one wall. I couldn't repress my eye roll. Then, a woman walked into the room. She had long blonde hair, and looked around 35. I felt faint.

"Who the hell are you?" _Please don't be who I know you are_, I begged internally.

The woman looked at me, "My name is Lillian Hale; I'm Edward's lawyer." I had to physically stop myself from groaning. The rest of the room looked shocked. She pretended that she didn't notice and walked passed me to sit in a chair. She looked at me pointedly, and I moved into the seat next to her. She leaned in and whispered in my ear.

"Carlisle called me. Don't worry, you shouldn't actually need me that much, he just wanted to be safe," she said, squeezing my hand. Then, louder, "all right, let's get this show on the road." She pulled out a tiny tape recorder and set it on the desk. While I did feel a tiny bit more comfortable having a lawyer, it was one more person who I didn't trust.

Lyons said something to Booker, Krieger, and Johnson. They left, assumingly to the room behind the mirror. Swan and Lyons sat down across from us, both with steaming coffee cups in front of them.

The round red head from the front desk popped her head in, "Sorry to interrupt, but Bella's on line one Charlie."

My eyes widened. _Shit_. Shit, shit, shit. I knew Swan sounded familiar. If the Chief was her father and he's going to be listening to everything I said, he could easily tell Bella, who would tell everyone else, who would hate me.

I turned to Lillian as Chief Swan left the room. "If there's stuff in there that I don't want the public to know, is everyone here under some sort of confidentiality agreement?"

"They'll only publicly release what would be helpful to catch someone, or of that nature," she whispered back. "But if there are personal experiences that you don't want the world to know, then yes, they are expected to hold back that information."

I sighed and dropped my head into my hands. The chair across from me scraping on floor informed me of Chief Swan's return. Without saying anything, Lyons got out a legal pad and a pen, and a folder.

"Edward, I'll just let you know that there are two different reports being written today. One about the incidents of the other night in Boston, and one about your kidnapping back in '06. Officer Johnson and Krieger are from the Boston Department, Booker and I are agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Chief Swan here will be doing the interview."

I nodded minutely. Lillian started the tape recorder, and Charlie opened up the folder in front of him.

"What is your full name?" he asked, and I noticed how shaky his voice was.

"Edward Anthony Cullen," I answered.

I gave him my date of birth, my parent's full name, height, weight, and other useless information. I managed to stay calm.

"Will you tell me exactly what happened on June 19, 2006? Don't leave anything out," he said, suddenly.

I numbly told him every detail of the day up until the moment in the car that I finally realized something was wrong.

_June 19, 2006_

_We had been driving forever. Signs weren't saying Chicago anymore. _

"_When are we going to be at your house?" I asked carefully. They just looked at each other. I tried absorbing that answer, and then asked several more times until I was screaming. James jumped into the back seat and took my entire neck in one hand, choking me._

"_Listen Eddie, you're going to have to be a little quieter now. My name is not James anymore, and your mother's isn't Elizabeth. I'm Andrew, she's Claire, and you're Masen. Got it?"_

_I tried to say something, but my eyes were starting to black out and I couldn't force anything out. I heard Elizabeth, or Claire, start to laugh._

"_I think he gets it, babe," she said. _

_James/Andrew let me go and I started crying. "When are you going to take me back?"_

_He just smiled, and to my horror pulled something out of his pocket. I imagined a gun or a knife but it was just a wrapper, with a damp cloth in it. As soon as he pressed it to my face, I realized what had happened... and before I could even think about pulling him off, I blacked out. _

_I woke up to the annoying sound of a loose ceiling fan spinning too fast. I was about to call for Esme to inform her of this, when I remembered exactly where I was. It was the nasty yellow couch I was on that gave it away. _

_Then, a dark figure appeared over me. _

"_All right Masen, get up, and don't ask any goddamn questions."_

_I followed him wordlessly, but only because I was too terrified to articulate anything. Scenarios were running through my head, and none of them ended happily. Were they going to kill me? Would I ever see my family again?_

_My heart nearly stopped at the thought of the Justice League, my baby sister, my parents._

_James/Andrew led me through a tiny apartment, explaining what I could and couldn't touch. What I could touch was basically the toilet, the yellow couch (which I was sleeping on,) and the mop. Then he explained the punishments I was to face if I didn't listen to him or Elizabeth/Claire. I was not going to disobey them anytime soon._

"_I assume sense you're Cullen's kid you're able to do some sort of math," he threw a huge black duffle bag on the floor by my feet, "count this. If you take anything, you'll _really_ wish you hadn't."_

_I stood there, gaping at the bag that had made a heavy thump on the floor. How does he have that much money?_

"_Did I ask you to stand there, looking like an idiot? Count the fucking money."_

_In the end, I counted over 17,000 dollars in that bag. _

_The rest of the day was the same routine. He'd tell me to do something, and I'd do it. By the time I collapsed on the couch, I had dozens of escape plans. I could not believe I had just become a statistic. I had just been _kidnapped_. It sounded so ridiculous and otherworldly. But right from under my feet, I was taken away from everything I loved. _

_Maybe he was just a jerk that was using me until I had to go home. But I remembered the drive that could've been hours long. I had no idea where we were. The blinds were among the things I was not allowed to touch. _

_My eyes slowly drifted shut and suddenly, the scratchy yellow couch became a bed. _

_I awoke alone, on the couch, which had transferred its mysterious scent onto my clothes. There was a glow of morning, so I knew I had slept through the night. There wasn't a single noise throughout the house. I sat up slowly, suspicious but not willing to let opportunity pass. My breath shook as I walked toward the kitchen, which had both a phone and window. And a knife. _

_As I turned the corner, I couldn't help my gasp. There on the kitchen floor was a large man, lying in a pool of blood. Elizabeth hovered over him, emptying his pockets. When she heard my gasp, she didn't even look at me. She just got up; pocketing something I couldn't make out, and walked towards me. I stiffened as she passed, but all she did was grab my hand and pulled me out the door. _

"_Your Andrew's son, Masen. You saw a big man leaving with a big black bag. Okay?" she asked, but I knew it wasn't a question. I had absolutely no idea what the hell was going on. As we neared the parking garage I saw James/Andrew standing opposite two men. _

_As we walked into the bottom floor of the garage, the bright orange lights turned everyone's faces into a glowing mask. James looked genuine in his conversation, something I was not used to. We were close enough that I could make out the odd jagged nose on one of the men. _

"_Andrew, sweetie, what's going on?" Elizabeth asked sweetly, clutching my hand, playing the perfect mother. I physically shook with my need to vomit. _

_The two men glared at us, while James moved to stand in front of us protectively. He was good. _

"_These guys think we took their money, but I have no idea what they are talking about. I swear, you guys can frisk me," James said desperately. _

_One of the men rolled his eyes. "It was in a large black duffel bag, it wouldn't fit in your pocket," he said. _

_James started to talk, but Elizabeth squeezed my hand._

"_Um, I saw a big guy running down the street with a black duffel bag," I said unenthusiastically, and a 'shocked' James turned to look at me. _

_The men raised their eyebrows, doubtful but curious. "What did he look like kid?"_

_I was silent, wondering what would happen if I told these intimidating guys that I had been kidnapped. James and Elizabeth both turned to look at me, where the men couldn't see their face. James expression was terrifying, so I desperately described the dead man on the kitchen floor. _

"_Well, um, he was big and muscular. He had short blonde hair, and was wearing sweat pants and a wife beater," I recited slowly, only looking at the floor, completely ashamed. _

_Elizabeth smiled slightly before she turned back around, then her face resumed an innocent expression. _

_The two men's mouths were open, looking furious. "Clint," they muttered at the same time. James looked utterly relieved, which was probably only half an act. _

"_So are we done here?"_

_The two glanced at us and waved their hands, absorbed in muttered conversation. Victoria pushed me forward, walking quickly to get back into the apartment. I looked around me, and there were no signs of any town names or attractions. The area looked shady, and I couldn't see a Chicago skyline at all. _

_We were nearly running up the stairs, and when James opened the door the room was full of people. The floor on the body was gone, like it had never been there. _

_There was a cheer as we entered the room. _

"_Around the table everyone," James yelled. There was a commotion as chairs scrapped floors. A very odd assortment of people settled around the kitchen table with excitement in their eyes. I stood in the doorway like an idiot. I noticed some people glancing at me, looking amused. _

"_Masen, sit down you dumbass," James said, but not as angrily as he usually sounded. _

_It took me a couple seconds to realize he was talking to me. When I realized what I had been called, Elizabeth's maiden name, I fumed. _

"_My name is Edward Anthony Cullen, and my parents are_ Doctor_ Carlisle and Esme Cullen. They will find you, and you will pay for this, so whatever money you just _killed_ for is probably mine now anyway," I said staring James in the eye. If I would have said this any other time, he probably would have murdered me, but all he did was laugh. _

_His companions, about ten to fifteen people, slowly started to laugh with him. _

"_Masen, Masen, Masen. Sit down," he said, pushing me into a chair. "Tanya! Get in here with the goods."_

_My jaw dropped. A girl who was maybe one year older than me walked into the room. Her hair was thin and blonde, but she was pretty. She didn't look at me as she dropped the bag into the center of the table. She pulled up a stool and sat behind a woman a few chairs to my left and struck up conversation with a bald man. I just stared at her, shocked that she was a part of this. _

_I didn't pay attention to what people were saying as James tossed around wads of cash with rubber bands around them, still confused as to what had just taken place. Obviously he didn't give me any. _

"_Now Masen, let's talk," James said, shutting everyone up, "do you honestly think your family is going to want you after what you just did? From now on, you're going to have to help us make money. We're all a big family here, and we need your help. We discovered with Tanya, that kids are essential. For some unknown reason people find them appealing," James said, disgusted. _

_Breathing was difficult at this point. "So you're asking me to let you use me to _kill_ people and take their money, which you obviously waste on drugs and prostitutes?" I looked pointedly at the girl Tanya was sitting behind. She definitely had the characteristics._

_James smiled, "I don't believe I _asked_ you anything. This is a kill or be killed world, Masen. Even more so in your case."_

**A/N- Well now you know some of the basics, but do not think that that is all that went on in those four years. I don't think I'll be able to post next sunday, so I apologize. I hope this answered some of your question. Review for my happiness :)**


	10. Easier To Run

**A/N: I didn't expect school to be so demanding, and that is the reason behind all of the waiting. I'm truly sorry for taking so long, but here is chapter ten of The Lost Hero. I would love to thank **glaciersapphire** for convincing me to upload this. Without her review, this chapter probably still wouldn't be posted. **

EPOV

By the time I returned, it was three in the morning. Every light was on in the giant, white house. I got out of the car and slammed the door shut. My eyes didn't leave my feet as I entered the mansion. I could feel eyes on me as I walked up the stairs to my old room. Or new room I guess.

To say I was in a bad mood would be putting it mildly. If there was ever a night that I needed to sleep, this was it. I collapsed on the bed, flexing my fists at the images in my head. There were a couple of gentle knocks on my door, but I made no move to let anyone in. I drifted in and out of sleep for a couple of hours. At one point, my eyes wouldn't close. It was probably because of the nightmares.

I looked over at the fancy digital alarm clock on the bedside table. It read 7:32. It was already pretty light outside, and I strained my ears for any movement downstairs. A couple pairs of footsteps littered the silence, probably three of the women because of the lightness of them. Absolutely not wanted company at the moment, I stayed in the bed.

I thought of seeing their faces for the first time in four years. I thought of Rosalie and Emmett, and of Alice and Jasper. I remember being suspicious of them when we were young. What happened to Emmett and Rosalie hating each other? Then there was Bella… How did she end up in the picture? Why did they always look at her for guidance, like they used to look at me?

I supposed while I was away, she was here, filling in my spot well enough. I couldn't bring myself to be mad about it, and the feeling of being replaced was only slight. It just made me hate myself more, because it should have been me. If the world was perfect, today would be like any other day. I would probably sleep in and I would wake up and eat a delicious breakfast and I would still call them superhero names and they would look up to me and I would play football and I would apply to a good college and everything would work out fine.

I don't know exactly how long I was on that bed, but the light coming into my room was starting to become dark orange. When there was barely any light left, there was another knock on my door. Of course, I made no motion to do anything about it. But this time, the door opened. Emmett was standing in the doorway.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to make you come out and talk to us," he said quickly. Something in the tone of his voice was slightly accusing. I tried not to let it sting, and sat in silence.

"It's just that whenever I'm in a pissy mood and want to tell everyone to fuck off, I go to the gym. I figured you probably shared that interest," he mumbled, "so I was hoping you would get out of the room and burn off some resentment I guess."

I seriously considered his offer. I hopped off the bed, actually looking forward to kicking the shit out of a punching bag. I cleared my voice.

"Yeah, I'm down, um thanks." I looked down to the outfit that I had been wearing since yesterday.

"No worries, I'll be right back with clothes and shoes." He said excitedly, nearly running out of my room. I exhaled sharply, and stood awkwardly where I was. He was back in seconds and threw some clothes at me and a pair of tennis shoes on the bed.

"I'll be in my car whenever you're ready."

I stood there for a moment before quickly changing. I was dressed in a gray sleeveless shirt and navy mesh shorts. I meekly opened my door, expecting some sort of greeting party. But thankfully, no one was there. As walked down the hall and looked over the balcony, I could see nearly every one in the living room intently watching the TV. I looked closer and realized it was Lyons talking behind a podium and some of the other guys from the station sitting around him. Bella's dad was standing next to Lyons, staying completely silent as Lyons rambled on details about me, and excuses as to why it was so hard to locate us.

Jasper suddenly turned around and looked up at me. I averted my eyes and walked down the stairs. By the time I reached the bottom, I could feel everyone staring at me. I paused for a moment, trying to decide whether or not I wanted to turn around and meet their gaze, but walked out the door.

The sun was setting the air outside was damp. I immediately spotted a huge jeep and walked toward it. As soon as I shut the door, Emmett peeled out of the driveway. Music was playing quite loudly, and Emmett was drumming his hands on the wheel to the beat of it. Looking out the window, I thought of nothing.

Nearly an hour later, we pulled into the parking lot of a large gym.

"I hate the high school's gym, so I just got a membership here," he rambled on as we walked. "I'm one who likes to work out late, and its open 24 hours so it seemed my best choice. I'll probably just lift, but you can do what ever you want. I have a guest spot on my membership for Jasper so don't worry about paying or anything. Let's say we leave at ten?"

I realized he asked a question and shook my head in agreement. We walked into the air conditioned building. I looked around as he signed in and saw that they had every piece of equipment you could ever want to work out with.

"Okay," Emmett said leading me away from the reception area, "you got your cardio, free weights, b-ball courts, kickboxing, and everything in between," Emmett said, pointing in various directions. "Meet me at the car at ten and uh, have fun."

He began to walk away, and I headed toward the treadmills. Thankfully, there was only one other guy there, so I chose the machine farthest away from him. I ran and ran and ran and ran. Sweat was pouring into my eyes, my heart was hammering in my chest, and I absolutely loved it. After I ran some more, I thought of punching bags. I hopped of the treadmill and made my way to where Emmett said the kickboxing was. No one else was in the large room. A dozen red and blue bags were hanging from the ceiling. I strapped a pair of gloves on and went to town on a large blue bag. I didn't even register what I was doing, I just hit and kicked.

I was distantly aware of someone saying my name, but thought nothing of it. When I felt a hand on my shoulder, I snapped around with my fist raised. As soon as I saw the worried look on Emmett's face, I dropped my hand. I stood there, panting and ashamed. Emmett gave a shaky laugh.

"Its ten thirty bro, I've been looking everywhere for you. Let's roll."

I nodded and took off the gloves, throwing them on the floor. We got into the car, and this time there was no music. Nearly a half an hour of silence passed before I finally vocalized something that had been on my mind for a while.

"You said you like to workout whenever you get angry… why were you upset today?"

Emmett looked shocking to hear me speak, and it took a while for him to respond.

"Um, I don't really know. The past couple days have just been kind of stressful, you know? And then what they were saying on the press conference…" He said, shaking his head.

"I'm sorry, and not just about almost hitting you or keeping you waiting. But about everything… about making this hard for you." I said extremely quietly, and then added, "How much… what was on the press conference? What do you know?"

Emmett looked at me for a long time before answering that question. I was beginning to get worried about him keeping his eyes on the road.

"Nothing we didn't already know."

BPOV

Everyone sat on the coach in silence, all in our own little world. The press conference had long ended, but clips were all over the evening news channels. It was becoming unbearable, so Rosalie changed the channel to some cooking show. This might've actually held my interest a couple of days prior, but at the moment, I was too distracted.

Suddenly the door opened, and in walked Emmett and Edward. Their shirts were still slightly damp, despite how far away I knew the gym was. I assumed they rode with the top off, because Edward's hair was chaotic. I tried not to realize how ridiculously good he looked despite this.

"How was the gym?" Esme called out, trying to sound nonchalant. Emmett ran up the stairs, while Edward walked, putting space between them.

"It was great, exhausted. Taking a shower." Emmett summarized as only he could.

Edward didn't say anything as he walked into his room, but I soon heard two showers running.

"Bella honey, go get some pajamas for Edward. He doesn't have anything comfortable to sleep in. Carlisle should have something. Alice, you are in luck. I believe tomorrow will be a day of shopping. There are so many things he needs, regardless of his lack of asking for them." Esme said.

Alice squealed and they started to hurriedly discuss just what he 'needed.' Carlisle did in fact have every color and fabric of sweatpants imaginable. In a hurry, I picked out a light blue t-shirt and soft blue flannel pants. I blushed deeply as I grabbed a package of unopened boxers that I knew Carlisle had in his drawer from doing laundry.

I could still hear the water running in Edward's room, so I walked in and quickly folded the garments on his bed. I thought about all the times I had slept here. I had searched his entire room on more than one occasion, purely curious. I knew where there was still money from his childhood, how there was a baseball bat behind his door, and how he had carved Justice League on the side of his dresser.

Suddenly, I realized the water had stopped and heard the lock turning on the bathroom door. Panicking, I grabbed the clothes and ran over to the door, hopefully making it look like I had just walked in.

And then there he was, in all his glory. My mouth popped open, half because I was feigning surprise, and half because of his amazing body. He looked surprised, but not embarrassed in the least. He was still dripping wet, and his towel was slung low on his hips. After a couple moments of us standing in silence he said smoothly, "Sooo… is there anything I can help you with?"

I internally smacked myself for gawking, and somehow stuttered out the suave reply of, "I, clothes, uh, Esme said, clothes. Esme said you needed clothes. So here, clothes." I dropped the clothes on the bed, wincing at the amount of times I said 'clothes.'

Edward looked slightly amused. "Well thank you, for the…clothes."

I forced a small laugh and walked out of the room, shutting the door a little too forcefully. Of course then I walked right into Emmett, who was smiling a little too knowingly.

**A/N: Thank you thank you thank you thank you for sticking with me and reading. Review for a hot-steamy-just-out-of-shower-Edward :)**


	11. Lullaby

**A/N- Hello! Here is the latest chapter of The Lost Hero! I apologize for the mistakes, but i was in a hurry to put this one out. Read the bottom for a little more info. **

November 13, 2006, Boston  
EPOV

Today was not a good day. I mean, there was a very low standard for my days lately, but even today was below it. Teddy left, and James was furious. They had gotten in a fight the night before, and when we woke up, he was gone. I had no idea what the fight was about, but I had a feeling that I was the only one who didn't. I fell asleep on the floor of the apartment, listening to the two men's booming voices with the occasional sound of something being broken. It was barely light outside when I woke up to James storming around our tiny living space. Kasper was trying to calm him down, and was very unsuccessful. Kasper was a lanky black guy, who always kept his cool; no matter what. The rest of them were pacing or sitting in the living room.

There was Tix, who was skin and bones. She ate as well as the rest of us did, but she never gained weight. Her tiny wrists were constantly at eye level, because she always had a cigarette between here long fingers. Tix always looked nervous, and never spoke to me.

Co and Caine were the only two I liked other than Tanya. They were always so jumpy and happy, and they were the only ones who never touched any form of drugs. They were twins, and it was still difficult for me to tell them apart. They both suffered from insomnia and when I couldn't sleep, which was happening more and more, they always stayed up with me and made me laugh. They didn't talk to me around James or Elizabeth.

Peach was, of course, from Georgia. But behind her sweet name and charming southern accent, she was the biggest bitch I had ever met. Other then Elizabeth of course. Elizabeth was just straight out evil, but Peach was more deceiving. She would pretend to want to help you, but then laugh in your face for falling for it. And she definitely wasn't against slapping me, even though it got her in trouble with James.

Ace and Teddy were really good friends, both intimidating assholes, just like James. They all had similar body types, although Ace was bald. They tried so hard to suck up to James and it was almost pathetic to me.

But Scout was always James' right hand man. It made no sense to me, because Scout was the quietest one of the group. While Kasper was arrogant in his silence, Scout was thoughtful. He had never said a harsh word to me, but something about him always scared me.

Of course Tix, Peach, Co, Caine, Kasper, Ace and Teddy were not their real names. No one knew each others names. James and Elizabeth had given them their new names, and there was never any question about them. Me and Tanya were the only ones who didn't have nicknames. Our name was whatever he wanted it to be. So when he called me Edward, the Crew just assumed it was another pseudo name. I was the only one who knew James and Elizabeth's real names. Everyone else called James Cap, and Elizabeth Miss.

Tanya. If anyone confused me, it was her. We automatically became friends, it kind of just happened. But she was distant, and it had only just started to get better. She would be laughing and talking to me one moment, and then she would turn around and walk away, like I didn't even exist. Sometimes she would look at me with such hatred, but five minutes later look at me like I was her best friend. And this morning, it happened to be the former.

I looked at her questioningly as I sat up, wondering what happened and why she was staring at me like that.

"This is your fault you little shit! I knew it, you were a bad idea. We are too large, there's not enough money to go around." James yelled at me. Tanya then changed the direction of her glare to James. When he met her glare, she averted her eyes. She was just as scared of him as the rest of us, maybe even more so.

"Cap, don't be ridiculous. Teddy left because he was jealous. He couldn't stand the fact that Anthony was actually useful. We will be fine with out him, and he wouldn't say shit to anybody," Scout said calmly.

"Does he really think he can just leave? That I wouldn't fucking hunt him down and kill him? And right before the first big Hit, too. My goddamn blood is BOILING Scout, its BOILING," he paused his tirade and looked at me.

"You, come here." He said, almost sounding patient. I felt sick to my stomach, and my palms started sweating.

I had been there for nearly five months; I knew the drill.

Some large amount of time passed, and I was alone on the floor of the hallway. I could vaguely hear the sound of them eating and talking around the table. I stood up slowly, and realized I could only see out of one eye. I made my way to the bathroom, wanting to assess the damage. It wasn't bad, compared to what James was capable of. My right eye was swollen and my head was pounding. I pulled down the sleeve of my shirt and noticed a large purple bruise starting to form on my shoulder. I tried to lift my arm and move it around, but it was difficult. Bruised ribs were James specialty so I didn't even bother looking at those.

I hadn't eaten since breakfast yesterday morning, so I walked into the dining room. Every one stopped talking and eating except for James and Peach. I paused for a minute, looking at Tanya, before I sat down in the empty seat in-between her and James. I scooped some of the Hamburger Helper onto my plate, avoiding everyone's eyes. They slowly started talking again, but Tanya never took her eyes off of me.

I later realized, neither did Scout.

November 21, 2006

We all stood in the living room, and there was a sort of electric current undulating throughout us. Ace was jumping lightly up and down, shaking his arms. Tix was adjusting her tiny skirt to make it even shorter. The sun hadn't even started to rise, and I stifled a yawn. I looked around the room, knowing I would never see it again. We had been staying in this relatively large although disgusting apartment for around three months. I wondered where we would be staying tonight...

"In the cars," James simply said as he walked into the room briefly, before leaving again.

I followed Caine and his shock of red hair down the stairs and into the dark morning. I spotted the large black truck we were going to be 'borrowing.' I heard the muffled sound of a couple car windows breaking, and the nerves started to set in. What if something went wrong this time?

Thankfully, Caine had been watching the owner of the truck for weeks and knew that he didn't bother locking it. He hotwired the car in seconds and we sat, waiting for the Volvo to go in front of us. The car contained James and Scout, and they were supposed to lead. Then us, the car with Peach, Ace and Co, and then the last car with Elizabeth, Kasper and Tanya who was actually Madison today. I was still Anthony.

We were soon on the highway, staying in our formation for nearly five hours. I had almost been sleeping when I felt the car stop. The bright sunlight turned into white, artificial light. I knew we were in some sort of body shop because of all the cars and tools surrounding us. All four of the cars pulled in, and when James got out, we all did the same. A large Japanese man walked out and greeted James warmly.

"What a pleasant surprise brother," he said with no trace of an accent. He looked around at us and the cars. He seemed slightly nervous to be so heavily outnumbered.

"Renz, it's been too long. Sorry for not contacting you, I just have to watch my shit lately." He looked at me, and Renz followed his gaze. Renz shook his head, like he immediately understood. I looked down.

"Of course. What can I do for you Captain?"

"I need all of these cars to be painted, just enough so they don't fit any profiles. It doesn't need to look amazing, just different. Hell, you could spray paint them if you want to."

Renz nodded, looking over the cars. "Consider it done," he said happily.

He whistled, and four men of various races entered the garage. One got in every car and pulled them into unseen rooms.

"It will be very fast, and you don't have to worry about waiting for it to dry." He said, obviously pleased with himself.

"Very good," James said, smiling.

"Follow me," Renz said. He led us to a decent sized sitting room, with chairs and a TV. "You can wait here, I'll check in when everything's done."

He closed the door, and we all found a seat. Everyone was quiet, the only noise being from the TV and a few occasional sounds from the garage. I picked up a TIME magazine and read every article in it. I should be in school right now. I should be with my League...

It was late afternoon by the time we were back on the road. The truck was now bright red, and the Volvo was black even though we hadn't stolen that one.

When we stopped for a second time, it was in front of a small house in the middle of nowhere. The area was beautiful, and painfully similar to Forks. I could smell the ocean, and forest surrounded us on three sides. Caine, who had been weirdly quiet during the drive, paused before stepping out of the truck.

"Well this is it, kid. Good luck tomorrow. Even though no one says it, we need you." He stepped out before I could muster a reply, and I was thankful for that.

I was the last one to enter the house. I looked like someone still lived in it. Everyone seemed to be wondering the same thing, so James explained.

"I have friends, who owe me things. This one's out of town. Madison and Anthony, go upstairs. First door on the left."

I was happy to get away, so I did what he said, almost running up the stairs. Tanya followed closely behind me, probably thinking the same thing. There was a twin bed in the center of the room, though it looked like the quilt hadn't been used in years.

I took one of the thin pillows off of the bed, and found a throw blanket in a linen closet. I made myself a bed on the floor, which smelled like old lady and musk.

"Anthony, you don't have to do that. You always sleep on the floor, please just take the bed this once," Tanya begged.

"My name is Edward," I said quietly, lying down. I heard her settle into the bed after a few moments. Her breathing soon slowed, and I knew she was sleeping.

I thought of my house, and the way the yellow sunlight streamed through the trees surrounding it, giving it an ethereal glow during the summer. I thought of the way the gravel sounded when Carlisle arrived home after long hours at the hospital, and how delicious the kitchen always smelled. The way the soft carpet of the living room felt between my toes, and the taste of homemade popcorn while the Justice League huddled on the large couch downstairs, watching a movie that Alice always picked.

Before I began dreaming of super heroes, I swore I heard Tanya whisper, "Goodnight Edward."

**A/N- Hello again, did you like? If you noticed, I'm starting to name chapters based on songs that I feel relate to the particular chapter or story. If you have any suggestions, please, let me know! This chapter's title comes from **_Lullaby- One Republic_**. You can find the list of chapter songs on my profile, once more chapters are added. I listened to Lullaby a lot while writing the ending to this chapter. **

**Also, I finally finished the outline for TLH, so now I actually know where this story is going. Thank you for reading! Please review to make me smile :)**

**PS- Is anyone else in the midwest? How 'bout that storm last night. Holy snow batman... **


	12. Sleeping Sickness

**A/N- Hola! Bonjour! Hello! Thanks for reading :)**

June 19, 2010, 3:19 AM

EPOV

The house was emptier than I was used too. It was just Esme, Carlisle, Bella, and Alice tonight. Which I was fortunate for, because for some reason that night I fell asleep.

Maybe it was the combination of the physical workout and the mental fuck fest my mind had been through in the last couple of days. Sleeping was something I longed for, and yet it terrified me. It was torturous, lying in the feathery-plush-soft goodness, forcing my eyes open when peaceful slumber was about three counted sheep away. It could also have been due to the fact that I hadn't actually slept in five days.

Regardless, I finally succumbed. I allowed myself to test the bed, carefully climbing under the designer covers for the first time in four years. It felt fucking _divine_. I tried to assess the moment, but my thoughts were getting blurry. I was in _pajamas_. As in, specifically-made-to-be-slept-in clothes. I was in blue pajamas. In a big, fluffy, blue and black bed. That's about the time I imagined I fell asleep.

The nightmare made no sense, but terrified me all the same. I was in a cemetery, or rather, looking over a cemetery. It seemed like there was a funeral taking place, but there were only two people present; a man and a woman. The casket came from no where, floating down into the ground. The casket was just a wooden crate, and looked like it was about to fall apart. The batman symbol was branded on the top.

The woman was shaking, but a lace veil hid her face. I strained to get a better look at the man's face, but out of nowhere, a pastor appeared.

"-and so lived and died Masen, the lost boy who nobody ever loved."

The women lifted the veil off her face. It was Elizabeth, and she wasn't sobbing. She and James were shaking with laughter. I tried to scream and yell and run, but because dreams have a way of making that sort of thing impossible, I couldn't.

Gravity changed, and I was sitting up in bed, screaming bloody murder. My body was slick with sweat, and I had pushed the blankets to the floor. And then Bella was there, sitting at the edge of the bed, reaching towards me. Concern was all over her face as she tried to quiet me.

"Edward, you have to calm down. You're going to wake everyone up, and I know you wouldn't like an interrogation right now," she whispered soothingly.

I was still disoriented, but I understood that I had to shut the hell up. I squeezed my eyes shut, and brought my knees up so I could lean on them. I sighed roughly, furious that I couldn't just fucking sleep. Running a hand through my hair multiple times, I snuck a peak at Bella. Shame flooded my entire body.

"Damn Bella, I'm sorry. I just... I have sleeping problems. Didn't mean to wake you." Before I was even finished, she had gotten off the bed to retrieve the covers.

"Please, you can't honestly be apologizing for having a nightmare." She gently laid the sheets and comforters onto my legs, but I couldn't help pushing them off immediately. She looked hurt.

"I'm not going to back to sleep," I offered simply, standing up. When we stood next to each other, I towered over her.

She crossed her arms, and I assumed she was trying to warm herself. "Well, what exactly are you going to do at three in the morning?" she inquired almost angrily.

I looked around the room sluggishly, "I don't know, probably read. Staying awake was much easier when-" I cut off abruptly. Was I really just about to fucking say that? I was now wide awake, blanching at my own stupidity.

Bella's head was cocked, with an oddly curious expression on her face. "When what?"

"Nothing, you should go back to bed. Sorry for disturbing you, and thanks for... shutting me up." She just kept looking at me with that weird look on her face. Finally, she turned and left without saying anything. I sighed and slumped forward, cursing myself. It was true. How was I supposed to stay conscious when I didn't even have a cigarette to keep my eyes open? I trudged over to my desk and sat down with my head between my hands.

Suddenly, my door opened and Bella walked in again. This time she had a steaming mug and a plate with what looked like a muffin on it. I actually looked at her this time. Her tiny hands connected to tinier wrists which looked like they were the same size as Alice's. All of her hair was piled into a messy bun at the top of her head, and her lips looked puffy. She was wearing a huge sweatshirt, with the Forks Police insignia on it. I could barely see the tiny shorts poking out from underneath the sweatshirt. Jesus Christ.

She set the cup and plate on my desk, and brought a stool over and sat by me. I stared at her until she spoke.

"Its coffee, you know the black stuff that usually helps people stay awake? I just put some sugar in it, because that's how Carlisle likes it. Blueberry muffin, made by yours truly."

As she said this, she pulled her knees up completely, until her tiny frame was sitting in the fetal position. I really tried not to think of the word adorable, but she looked fucking adorable.

I cleared my throat and took a drink of the deliciously scalding coffee. My throat was slightly irritated from the screaming episode. I had to stop myself from chugging it.

"Thank you, it's perfect. You really didn't have to..." The right words to say would not come to me. We were both quiet for a few minutes as I ate.

"What you said, you made it sound like you are always trying to stay awake," she said abruptly, like it was more of a question.

I resorted to attacking my blueberry muffin and nodding, not really wanting to say anything else.

"You know, there's a lot of stuff you're going to have to do... Esme is just making everyone wait cause your birthday is in two days. Well, tomorrow actually."

My head snapped up. Shit, I had completely forgotten. I'm turning seventeen in 24 hours. I washed down my ridiculously good muffin with the coffee before saying anything.

"Please tell me she isn't planning anything... I don't want-" Again, I didn't know what I was trying to say.

"Don't worry, she isn't planning anything to outlandish. Although it's not her you should watch out for, it's Alice. Esme wants you to be comfortable on your birthday, but you better believe you will be getting gifts. A lot of gifts," she then changed the subject completely, "Have you been watching the news at all?"

I shook my head, still thinking about the words 'gifts' and 'a lot'. She stood, and walked toward the window. She beckoned me over with a wave of her hand. Once I was at the window, she pulled apart the curtains, and pointed to an object I couldn't quite make out in the darkness.

"Look under the tree," she said. My eyes adjusted to the darkness, and I realized what she was talking about. The bottom of the tree looked like it had a growth.

"What the..." I muttered, cutting off for her benefit.

"They're gifts. People always stop and leave things, like teddy bears and candles."

"Why?" I insisted harshly. "I'm not dead for fucks sake. I didn't do anything to deserve _teddy bears_." Why couldn't people mind their own goddamn business?

She looked taken aback. "You came home Edward, and it gives people hope. Your story... they love it. You're not supposed to know this, but three major news stations have already called the house, wanting to do a live interview with you."

I just shook my head, incredulous. "Absolutely not," I demanded, thinking of sitting across from Larry King.

She nodded, "Of course, Carlisle refuses. But like I said, after your birthday, there's a lot of things to be done...School registration, you have to go to the hospital, you need a Washington drivers license, you need to tell Lillian something to say to the public, you should probably see a psychiatrist to get you sleeping pills. So on and so forth."

Rude words bubbled up to my lips, but her yawn, which was also way to fucking adorable, interrupted me. I pushed away the anger and annoyance. "Bella, go to bed. I'm fine."

She nodded sleepily, but was hesitant as she backed out the door. "Don't worry, everytha zguna be fi," she tried to say, but ended up yawning again. I bit my lip to keep from smiling.

"Yes Bella, goodnight." She shut my door quietly, and I was left alone in my dark room again.

The coffee had helped a little, so I could manage to keep my eyes open and form coherent thoughts. The smile fell from my face as I thought about what had just happened. In the last half hour, I had talked more than I had in weeks, other then the police reports. Talking to her was different. Because it didn't feel like she as expecting anything out of me. I felt like I was walking on eggshells when I spoke around anyone else, like they were comparing everything I was saying to a younger version of myself.

I tried not to tell myself that I didn't enjoy the company, but I did. And it scared me. I thought of Tanya, and everyone else. Regardless of basically being eachothers only friends for four years, we never talked about shit like that. When we talked, we talked about Hits and sleeping arrangements and about Peach pissing us off. Talking to someone might have been nice, but I would've had to tell the truth, and I wasn't ready for anyone to know that.

I wasn't going to push anyone away with my horror stories, right when I had gotten them back. That shit could wait. I walked over to the bookcase with my hands in my pocket. I mindlessly grabbed a rather large book, and dragged my feet over to the bed. I plunged into the book, not looking up until it was light outside. I could hear commotion downstairs, and I assumed that by nine thirty the twins and Emmett had arrived. There was a soft knock on my door, and I automatically knew who it was. I didn't say anything, and she took my silence as permission to enter.

She was wearing jeans and a plain red shirt, and her hair was falling to her waist in natural waves. "Breakfast is ready; you should come eat with us. You didn't have dinner last night..."

I closed my book, considering. I honestly wasn't hungry, but I was desperate to get off my ass. She just leaned in the doorway, waiting. I sighed and rose to me feet, tremendously stiff. She smiled, and walked downstairs. My first couple of steps were shaky as I battled with my exhaustion. I shook my head, slapping myself in the face lightly to wake up. I didn't stop to look at myself in any mirrors, but I was sure I looked like hell. I couldn't find it in me to care.

As I walked down the stairs, I wanted to rejoice in the fact that no one stopped to completely stare at me like I was used to. Of course, everyone still looked at me, but this time they tried to be at least tried to be sneaky about it. Esme had the goofiest smile on her face, and I could tell she was trying to stop herself from doing it, but failing. Carlisle just nodded at me and smiled; a nod which I actually returned. I spotted Bella in the kitchen, setting the table. Without looking up, she asked, "white or whole wheat toast, Edward?"

At this everyone snapped their heads up at me, desperate to hear me answer. I really wished they would stop fucking doing that. "Uh, white I guess," I said, looking at my feet. Esme beamed, because I liked white bread when I was younger too. I rolled my eyes. _Yes Esme, my taste in bread is still the same. __  
_  
After a few minutes of the awkward standing that I was so used to doing, Bella called for everyone to come to the table. We sat in the same formation we did the last time, and it was just as quiet. Maybe it was just me, but it seemed a little less forced. After everyone except me was almost halfway finished with their meal, Alice spoke.

"So Edward, some of us are going shopping later today, you know, running some errands. Is there anything we could get you?" She asked carefully, gauging my reaction. I was quiet for a moment, wondering if she was asking what I wanted for my birthday.

"No, please don't get me anything. I'm fine, but thank you," I said carefully, knowing it was more than they were used to hear me saying. She nodded, chewing. And then I saw her look over at Esme and wink. She _winked_. Jesus Christ.

Hours had passed, and against my better judgment, I was sitting on the couch with Emmett, Rosalie, and Carlisle. Everyone else was shopping in Port Angeles. Channel surfing was just plain painful, flipping past news channels and dramatic crime shows. Emmett finally settled on the cartoon about the racing car. It seemed like pretty safe territory. I sat in between Emmett and Carlisle, and Rosalie was on the other side of Emmett. His arm was around her, and she basically in his lap.

I crossed my arms and tried to distract myself with the movie. We must have been on a children's channel, because Cinderella came on next. Before the opening scene even started, Emmett shot his hand up to change the channel.

"I swear if I watch this damn movie one more time, I might explode," he said, desperately trying to find another movie. Rosalie was plugging her ears to block the singing out. But of course, nothing else was available unless they wanted to watch something about me. He pouted as he dropped his arm, "Cinder-fucking-Ella it is."

"Emmett, language," Carlisle said sternly.

Why the hell had they watched Cinderella so much? I kept wondering this as Rosalie and Emmett went through the whole movie, reciting the lines perfectly. They were bitter and had ridiculous voices for every character they mimicked. I had to admit, it was mildly entertaining.

We were on a third movie, but I couldn't pay attention because my eyes wouldn't stay open. I was terrified of failing asleep in front of them, but I couldn't find an acceptable way to excuse myself.

The next thing I knew, I was being shaken awake quite forcefully. I was alone on the couch, and Bella was kneeling down next to me. I looked at her panicking, asking her silent questions.

"We came home and Esme called for everyone to help put groceries away. When you didn't get up, I came over and you were sleeping. I figured I would let you sleep until you started to make noise. You were moving a lot, so I tried to wake you up," she summarized quickly, "but you wouldn't wake up and I got scared so I started shaking you."

I sat up, pulling my hand over my face. I couldn't remember the nightmare, and I couldn't remember falling asleep. "Thank you, Bella, seriously." She blushed and looked down, and it was silent for a moment. "How bad is it?" I asked, not really wanting to know.

She smiled slightly, sympathetically. "Its pretty bad, no lie. But they just want to get you everything. You actually do need half of it, regardless of what you think." She stood up, and I followed suit. "Alice hates it when people don't appreciate gifts, so just act like you love everything," she offered. I wanted to tell her that I already knew this, that Alice was like that before. But I held it back, and asked a different question.

"You act like you're on the receiving end a lot," I said/asked. She rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Alice likes to play Barbie with me, 24/7." I raised my eyebrow. "She's relentless. Good luck," she smiled conspiringly as we entered the kitchen. Everyone was laughing, putting various foods in various places. If anyone noticed our entrance, they didn't make it apparent. I slowly walked towards a bag, and noticed that they were the recyclable ones. Could these people get anymore perfect? _These people are my family. _I repeated this mantra in my head until every last item was put in its rightful place. Alice was sitting on the counter, making fun of something about Jasper. People were laughing, and I was just sitting there, absorbing it all.

_These people are my family._

**A/N- You likey da chapter? The song is **_Sleeping Sickness _**by **_City and Colour_**, and I insist you take a listen. **

**I meant to put this up yesterday, but I was kidnapped. Although, unlike Edward, my kidnappers made me watch the full third season of Gossip Girl. And let me say, the whole time I was imagining Edward was Chuck Bass. Mwahahaha. **

**Thank you again, and please review and tell me what you think!**


	13. Sooner or Later

**A/N- Hello! I'm a tad late, forgive me? **

November 22, 2006

Tonight was the night. We were without Teddy, but his presence now seemed insignificant. I sat in a chair with my elbows on my knees, clasping and unclasping my hands, absolutely stricken with nerves. Everyone looked like they were muttering things to themselves. Probably reassurances or little details they needed to remember. With my hands clasped, I pinched the bridge of my nose with my thumbs, trying to take deep breaths. This was my first major Hit, and from what I heard it was the biggest they had ever done. Just my luck.

As James walked into the room, everyone wiped any trace of fear off of their face. Co and Caine were even smiling. James seemed completely unperturbed.

I didn't know a lot of details about what was going on today, just the bare minimum of what I needed to know to get the job done. It seemed more intense than any thing I had done, and I had hoped for this once they might share a little more with me.

With a nod of James' head, I was getting shoved out of the door by Peach. Her disgusting cat-like nails clawed into my back, but I held back my wince because I knew she loved getting reactions from me. I headed for the truck from the day before, not bothering to wait for Caine. He slid in the car smoothly, humming some upbeat song. I tried not to glare at him, but he noticed my mood.

"Don't let the worry get to you Little Buddy. That's what'll do you in right there, if you keep stressing about it. Just think, in a couple of hours, this'll all be over and we'll be stuffing our faces and living large."

I rolled my eyes. "For some reason I suspect that you don't view 'living large' the same way I do. Besides, you and I both know that I won't be receiving any sort of food or supplies we get to splurge on."

He didn't reply for a while, but when he did he spoke softly, completely opposite to the obnoxious sound I was used to. "I dunno man, seems to be a little different this time."

His reply terrified me, but I didn't let it show. I cleared my throat, trying to clear my head of the panic. Nonchalantly, I asked, "what makes you say that?"

His face then changed from somber, to oddly excited. "Like I said, you can't worry 'bout it. Don't psyche yourself out, man."

There was a tiny smile on his face the entire drive. I was going crazy inside, thinking of ways I could leave messages for my family if I did die, or if there was a chance that Caine would just take me somewhere and drop me off. It was something I was thinking about a lot lately. I had endured horrible things, made them good money, and never did anything about it. I was tired of just sitting there and letting myself be used, but I knew I would never act on these thoughts. Co and Caine seemed nice enough, but how good could they really be, just letting me be a hostage to their twisted way of life?

Trying to find my inner peace was impossible. Horrible things kept flashing in my mind. Things that would normally be considered happy, lighthearted memories were now excruciating. I didn't know if I was overreacting, but there really wasn't a way to find out because no one would tell me the truth.

We had headed out pretty late at night, so when we reached our destination it was three in the morning. based on the timeline they had drilled into my head, I knew we were right on time. We drove off the road, into the seemingly dense forest. Our cars weaved throughout the trees easily enough, and I knew we would soon be invisible. My heart was pounding in my chest, and he stopped the engine it was like a knife in my heart.

Caine reached over and grabbed my shoulder. Hard. "Look at me Anthony. You have got to calm down. Nothing bad is going to happen, we've been doing this for years and we know what we're doing. I know it's hard, but you have to trust us. It may not seem like it, but you are one of us, and we never let things happen to each other. Get your shit together." Every word he spoke was slow and deliberate; unlike I had ever heard him sound before.

I shook my head, thinking of all the ways this could go wrong. I heard the other car doors closing, and Caine gave me one last look.

"Don't mess this up by scaring yourself. Live through this, and don't complain. You won't get back to your family acting the way you are. They, just like us, need you to be strong. Get out of the car, and make me proud." I watch him get out of the car, flinching when he slammed the door.

I knew he was right. Whatever I was asked to do, I had to do it. It was the only way I could get back alive. The best thing I could do was to be calm and get the job done. There was not a lot of room for error, but if they could do it, then so could I. I could prove to James that I wasn't just some pawn in his little game.

I got out of the car, still terrified but smart enough to look indifferent. My eyes automatically searched for Tanya. I had developed protectiveness toward her, even though she hadn't done much to deserve it. I found her standing by Tix, looking emotionless just as I was.

There were various looks of enthusiasm and contentedness among the rest of them that I couldn't understand. I couldn't find James, but Scout was leaning against a car, and he wasn't wearing the same excited expressions as everyone else.

James, as usual, appeared from no where.

"Change of plans. Anthony and Madison are taking my and Missy's place."

I had no idea what this meant, so I looked at Caine. His face scared me more than anything prior. I slowly looked around at everyone's faces, and got the same outraged look.

"You have got to fucking kidding me Cap," Ace said.

"What are you talking about? Since when?" Elizabeth screamed.

"They are way too young, it's absurd," Co was ranting.

Soon, everyone was yelling over each other. I looked over to Tanya, and she must have known more than I did, because her face was buried in her hands. My stomach felt strange and I thought I was going to puke, but I kept my face straight.

"Everyone can shut the hell up!" James roared. Obviously, everyone did as he said .He looked over to Scout, who hadn't muttered one word. "I've heard that Aro may have re-joined them. He knows me and Miss and it would be a suicide mission if we went through with the Hit as was planned. You know it's our only option. Besides, everyone has a soft spot for kids." He said the last part looking towards Tanya.

I had no idea what it meant, but I felt like I wasn't going to like it. Before replying, Scout glanced at me, deliberating. I didn't know why James was seemingly asking for Scout's permission. I had gotten the impression that James' word was absolute.

Scout nodded once, and James' face melted into relief.

"You can explain what they need to do babe, I gotta piss." James told Elizabeth, heading back into the words.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, but waved me and Tanya over. She was sitting against a car. There were tree stumps surrounding her, so Tanya and I sat on them. She talked with a bored tone, sounding annoyed.

"I don't know how much you guys already know, but basically this group of people stole a shitload of cocaine, and is hoping to get a lot of money for it. We are alliances with the people they stole it from, and they just figured out who took it. They're called the Volturi, and they are new but pretty strong so our _friends_ don't want to deal with it themselves," the way she was talking made it seem like she wasn't so fond of their so called friends. "They are paying us a shit load of money to go get the drugs back, and uh, do some, _damage_, to the Volturi.

We'll surround them, watching from the woods. You guys will be a sort of bait. They plan on flying the drugs out of the country with a private plane that they will steal from this hanger. You guys will wait by the plane, doing whatever to distract them. Cap and I were going to be cleaning the plane and claim that it was ours. You can figure out what you're going to do. Anyways, distract them from doing any sort of security check they were going to do and their guard will be down. We will get behind 'em, they'll be outnumbered, and bam. It's all over. Got it?"

My mouth was hanging open slightly, and my head was swimming. I tried to envision everything in my head, and it all seemed pretty sketchy.

"What time will they get here?" Tanya asked, with a strong voice that surprised me.

"Around dawn, so we have about three hours to get ready. The hanger is just past these woods, so when all is said and done, we will just get back into the cars we came in."

Tanya nodded slowly. "And um… you don't think they'll just shoot us for getting in their way?" she asked quietly.

I looked at Elizabeth for this answer, seeing as it was something I was wondering myself.

She smiled, "Nah, they are that cruel. Don't think so anyway." She laughed, and walked away leaving me and Tanya sitting on the stumps, alone.

At this point, I was feeling drained and utterly hopeless. I could see Tanya's face, then Alice's and my mother's. I thought about what Emmett might say about my situation and all I could hear was '_this is the perfect time to prove that you really are Batman_.'

With that information, I gathered as much strength as possible.

I cleared my throat, "Okay so how are we distracting these guys?"

My senses were on over drive as I sat in pilot seat of the plane. Every twig that snapped and gust of wind was like an atomic bomb in my ear. I took a deep breath, trying to remember that I'm just a little kid, messing around on my Dad's plane with my girl friend.

Tanya was standing, hunched over in the tiny cockpit.

"We have to be laughing, Edward. We have to look…carefree for this to work," Tanya said quietly. The fact that she called me Edward didn't escape me.

"Well what do you suggest? Do you want me to tell a joke?"

She nodded minutely. I racked my brain, thinking of Emmett and his dumb jokes. I didn't know of any jokes that were actually funny, just amusing because of their stupidity.

"What do you call a cow with no legs?" I offered. She shrugged immediately, probably wanting to hear the punch line as soon as possible.

"Ground beef" I said lamely, smiling.

Her eyes were staring blankly, and I was worried it didn't work. But a smile slowly crept onto her face, and soon she was giggling softly. I had never seen Tanya laugh; even smiling was rare for her.

"Okay, another," she said. I already had one on my mind. It was the joke Esme always told me when I was in a bad mood.

"If you're American in the living room, what are you in the bathroom?" I asked this, already laughing.

She raised her eyebrow as the odd question, but shrugged nonetheless.

"European," I said.

She burst out laughing, and I couldn't help doing the same. It felt good, just laughing.

"Don't think about anything else Edward. It's just me and you against the world, okay?" Tanya said, still grinning. "I need another joke."

"What do you call cheese," I stopped when I heard a car. I looked through the window of the plane, and sure enough there were two black vans, driving slowly up to the hanger. The large garage was wide open, but I didn't know if they could see into the plane.

I looked at Tanya and a smile was still plastered on her face. She waved her hands as to say 'continue.' I nodded. As the cars stopped right outside the hanger, I asked "What do you call cheese that isn't yours?"

She just stared at me, smiling dumbly.

"Nacho cheese," I finished. She genuinely laughed somehow, and I followed her lead.

I was still smiling when two guys appeared in front of the plane, staring straight at us. Tanya looked at me and nodded, and I knew exactly what I had to do.

I turned toward the first man and cocked my head like I had no idea why he was there. He walked toward my door, and after taking a deep breath, I opened it.

The men were pretty tall; both had dark hair though one was long, and were both were very muscular.

"Can I help you guys with something?" I asked, successfully sounding irritated.

They looked at each other, and the one with long hair said, "We are going to need you to get out of the plane."

I crossed my arms, "This is my father's plane."

"Felix, could you please get the rest of them. We may have a bit of an issue," the one with the long hair said nonchalantly.

"Sure thing, Demetri," Felix said, sounding unperturbed. He ran out to the van, and an older man and young women got out of the car. Another guy who was walking around the perimeter of the runway stopped his search and walked into the hanger.

_My job is done_, I thought. Everyone was in the hanger, leaving the cars completely unprotected.

The older man held out his leathery hand. I shook it cautiously.

"My name is Aro, and these are my friends, Demetri, Felix, Jane, and Alec. What are your names?"

I looked at Tanya, who was doing a good job of looking timid. "This is Tanya, and I'm Edward. If you don't mind me asking, what exactly do you need with my father's plane?"

I resisted the urge to look over my shoulder, and see what was going on at the vans. Tanya's job was to glance over at the cars discreetly and pinch me when the job was done.

Aro smiled, "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but I must implore that you and your friend get out of the plane, without delay."

I knew he was about to look over to the vans, and without thinking, I pushed him.

"Or else?"

Almost immediately, four guns were pointed at my forehead. I felt faint, and nearly couldn't think through the fear. I wanted to cry in relief when Tanya pinched my leg roughly. I grabbed her hand.

"Okaaaay," I said, drawing the word out, "I guess we will just be leaving now."

I slipped past them and ran as fast as I could, still holding on to Tanya's hand. I was vaguely aware of the gunshots following us. The large doors started closing. I knew they had already locked up every other entrance to the garage, and this would close them in. The hanger was practically closed when I pulled Tanya through it.

I sprinted into the forest, weaving through the trees. I could feel the branches cutting me, but I didn't register the pain. It seemed like I had been running for hours by the time I had reached the cars. I collapsed on the ground, unaware of anything except breathing.

Slowly, I found my senses. I heard cars starting, felt the grass and my cuts, and smelled the earth. I saw a hand, and reached for it. I came to level with Caine and he was smiling.

"Get in the car, kid." I walked over to the truck, still breathing heavily. Without saying anything, Caine started the car. We were the last in the procession this time. I couldn't stop looking behind us, thinking I was going to see Aro's cloud of white hair.

"Relax man, you did so good. They won't get outta that thing while we're still around." He tapped the steering wheel lightly, and he was absolutely beaming. Despite the fact that I had just helped my captives steal cocaine, I felt pretty damn good about my self.

For the first time, I really felt like Batman.

**A/N- Thank you so much for reading! These flashback chapters are quite important, so thanks for hanging around to read 'em! **

**If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, I'm one click away :)**


	14. Happy Birthday To You

**A/N- Helloooo! This chapter is mighty long, enjoy!**

EPOV, June 20 2010

Somehow, I managed to escape dinner. I sat on my bed, trying to listen to the conversations downstairs. After some time had passed, I heard goodbyes being said and watched Rose, Emmett, and Jasper leave from my window. Then suddenly, I had a wonderful and terrible idea.

As a child, Alice and I were very trusted. With Carlisle being a doctor, we were all very informed on most things medical. I walked quickly into my bathroom and flung the cabinet door open. There was various shit from my childhood. A half-used tube of toothpaste, Q-tips, Band Aids, and mild pain relievers littered the shelves. But there, in all its shining glory was exactly what I needed. I reached for the blue-green bottle and flipped it over. Luckily, I still had a couple of months before the cough syrup expired. I twisted the child-proof cap off and couldn't help smiling. I tipped the bottle back and took two large gulps. Enough to knock me out, not quite enough to induce a high or hallucinations.

I coughed at the bitter taste, wiping my mouth as I walked back to my bed. It was ten, pretty early for me, but I flopped on the bed anyway. I got under the covers, even pulling them over my head. I curled up in a ball, knowing that with my empty stomach I would soon be out like a light. As I thought about what I had done, guilt bubbled its way to the surface. But before I could think too deeply, I was consumed by sleep.

It wasn't like I though it would be. I still had the nightmares, but this time I couldn't wake up. They were horrible and unrelenting, going from each of my most horrific memories to the next. Never stopping, no running, no screaming, no escape.

The sky was still dark when I awoke. It wasn't a violent action, although I was covered in a cold sweat. Even though I felt slightly nauseous, I felt rested. Not well rested, but at least I wouldn't have to walk around like a zombie today. My birthday.

The clock told me that I had a couple of hours before I would be called downstairs. I wouldn't be surprised if Esme and maybe even Alice were already up, but I was not about to go downstairs with them for four hours. Rubbing my face and sitting up, I realized that there was something on my desk. I pushed the blankets off and sat up. It was a tall mug of coffee and a small plate with a muffin on it. My eyes widened incredulously.

She had... she came into my room, while I was sleeping, and left me food. Really, really, good food. I lifted the cap off of the coffee and took a sip. It was still warm. I sat in my chair and ate my muffin, some apple-y cinnamon-y shit that made my eyes roll to the back of my head. The breakfast of champions. It was hard to resist thinking about the ridiculously kind action. As I ate, slowly as to burn as much time as possible, I noticed a pile of clothing with a note on it.

_Edward, _

_Here's some clothes of your very own, a small fraction of Alice's gift. Happy Birthday. _

_-Bella_

Well shit.

I decided to waste time by taking shower. I walked into the bathroom, my eyes immediately landing on the cough syrup. I hastily shoved it back in the cabinet, shuddering at the feeling of being trapped in my dreams.

The warm water felt amazing. I quickly washed my body and my hair, and just let the water run over me until my skin went numb. It was difficult for me to get out, but I knew I had already been in there for probably 45 minutes.

I dressed slowly and shaved even slower. I quickly ran a towel through my hair, which was now much more manageable because of Esme's haircut. The bruise on my forehead was light purple instead of black, and the laceration was less gory. I covered it with a large Band Aid anyway.

I looked at the clothes Bella had left for me, and tried not to notice the designer names. It did feel nice though, having a pair of clothes that I could depend on other then my beloved leather jacket.

I had successfully wasted two hours, and the sky was now fully illuminated. I stood in front of my large window, on the opposite wall of my bed. I had always loved this window because it gave me and amazing view of our front yard and the sunrise. The large tree caught me eye, and I was surprised to see that the mass at the bottom had grown.

I scanned the area of my yard. There weren't any vans or cameras, despite was Lyons had said. I had a feeling that Carlisle was doing a pretty good job of keeping them away. I searched for some socks, and thanked Alice internally. Balancing the mug on the plate, I opened my door.

As I walked out of the room, I immediately knew that Esme was awake. A soft classical CD was playing, and I recognized a cello piece from my childhood. I took a deep breath as I walked into the kitchen, where I knew she would be.

And there she was, cleaning the counters and humming along with the music. I watched her, leaning against the wall. She was smiling, looking as polished and classy as ever. She was always dressed nicely, and while on some it would look pretentious, she just made it look effortless. I cleared my throat softly, not wanting to scare her.

"Hello sweetheart, and happy seventeenth birthday," she said without looking up or stopping what she was doing. I realized that she knew I was there the whole time. It didn't really surprise me though, Esme was like that. When she finished, she walked over to me and pulled the dishes out of my hands and set them on the counter.

She wiped her hand on a dish towel and hugged me lightly. She pulled back, searching my face with a serious expression. "You look like you slept a little better. Are you hungry? It's your choice this morning."

I ignored her observation of my sleep, and regarded her second statement. I wasn't really hungry, still satisfied from my mini breakfast from earlier. But it's not like she knew about that.

A tradition from when I was younger was that the birthday kid always got to pick every meal, no matter how odd or what anyone else said. I couldn't think of anything I really wanted, so I remembered what Alice always picked.

"Um, how about that cinnamon french toast stuff?" I suggested weakly.

She tilted her head to the side, raising an eyebrow. When I didn't respond, she slowly said, "wonderful choice."

"I'm going to um... go look at the tree," I said looking at the floor. She just smiled and nodded.

The air was crisp in the early morning light, so I shoved my hands in my pockets. As I approached the massive tree, I realized it was much worse than I thought it would be.

Thankfully, it hadn't rained, so nothing was ruined. There were letters and pictures, pictures of me and other lost kids, tapped to the trunk of the tree. I closed my eyes.

I knew that in a sense, I was lucky. I had made it home after four years, and I knew that most of these kids probably wouldn't have the same fate as me. My heart clenched, and I ripped all of the letters from the trunk of the tree, vowing to read them at some point. On the ground, there were teddy bears of every shape and color imaginable. One even had my name sewed onto its belly.

Even more so then teddy bears, there were flowers. I had never seen that many bouquets of flowers. Some were starting to wilt; others looked like they had just been placed there. There were some balloons that were slightly deflated, attached to a stuffed animal of a species I couldn't name. Picking through the pile, I found a silver picture frame with the number 2011 engraved into it. It was a picture of my class, sitting in the bleachers of the high school. There was a banner hanging below them, saying 'Come Home Edward!"

My chest had this foreign feeling, and for a moment I was scared I was going to cry. I swallowed the lump in my throat and rose to my feet. I gathered up all the letters and the bear with my name on it and made my way back to my house.

As I walked up the stairs, I ran into Alice.

"Edward, Happy Birthday!" She hugged me, despite the things in my arms.

"Thanks," I said, embarrassed.

She just smiled and continued her walk downstairs.

"Everyone else will be here in about a half hour-" she paused, listening to something, "never mind, Bella's here. Anyways, breakfast is at nine!"

I just nodded, wondering how she knew that Bella was here. Then I heard a ridiculously loud vehicle from the direction of the driveway. The loud grumbling stopped and I assumed that it was Bella's mode of transportation.

When Alice disappeared, I walked into my room, dumping all of the colorful envelopes on my bed. I found a rubber band in my bedside table's drawer and wrapped it around the thick stack of paper, just like I used to do with money. I didn't really know what to do with the teddy bear, and I slightly regretted taking up. I just threw it in my closet.

I sat at my desk, looking out my window. It was so odd that I was turning seventeen, and even more odd that I was spending it with my family. I though back to my twelfth birthday party which was spent in a water park at in California. We were allowed to stay in our own hotel room. It was of course connected to Carlisle and Esme's by a door, but still, it was pretty cool.

I remember thinking that it was the best night of my life. Thinking back on it, it probably was. It didn't have much competition on the past four years. Or maybe it was the night I was taken. I smiled slightly at the memory. Now that was a good night...

Three more cars pulled into the drive way. A red BMW, a large dark blue truck, and Emmett's humongous green jeep. I looked at the clock and saw that it was almost nine.

Slowly, I walked out of my room, not wanting to come face to face with them as they entered the house. I heard the front door slam shut and there voices, which the large foyer carried loudly. I waited a few more seconds, and then walked down the stairs, already dreading the attention that was about to be on me.

As I entered the kitchen, they all turned and smiled at me.

"Mornin' Birthday Boy!" Emmett called, punching me in the arm lightly. I smiled, only half because I felt I had to.

There were other 'Happy Birthdays' said and I muttered my thanks accordingly. The smell of cinnamon was potent, and I realized I was hungry, thankfully.

"Alright, breakfast is served!" I heard Bella yell.

I followed the into the formal dining room, which was only used for holidays and dinner parties. The table looked amazing. There was a buffet of steaming food along the center of it, and a formal dining set it front of every chair. The centerpiece was a large silver vase with twisted vines and bright orange flowers erupting from it. Orange had been my favorite color, but I had taken to darker colors over the years.

I picked a random seat, ending up sitting next to Jasper and Esme at the head of the table. Bella sat directly across from me, and I made a point to not look at her. Often.

"Let's eat," Carlisle called, already dropping a stack of the toast onto his plate. I stabbed a piece with my fork and plopped it onto my plate, along with bacon and fruit. Milk and water was already poured into the glasses on the table.

Of course, the meal was absolutely delicious. I was able to eat most of everything, only leaving some fruit and bacon behind. It was silent during most of the meal, although I didn't expect anything less.

Alice was nearly vibrating in her seat throughout the entire meal. Bella would glare at her half-heartedly, which always just ended up with a smile.

People began finishing their meal, looking around, unsure what was next. Alice took over without complaint.

"Okay, let's do presents!" She squealed. Jasper turned towards her, eyes wide.

"It's a little early, Ali," he chastised.

"You don't understand Jazz, doing all the presents at dinner would be a disaster. There is simply to many," She said, matter of factly. "Alright, everyone up!"

Esme smiled apologetically, but stood, and everyone soon followed her. I was the last one seated, but quickly stood when I saw everyone staring down on me.

"I really hope you didn't get me too much," I started to say, but was quickly interrupted by Alice.

"Nonsense! There could never be too much," She said incredulously.

I sighed deeply, feeling completely uncomfortable. Bella looked back at me, and we made eye contact, something that I was desperately avoiding. She quickly looked ahead again, our connection lasting half of a second. But it left behind some strange sensation. I tried to ignore it.

Alice had led us to the garage door. Relief filled me as I realized the gift was probably the car.

"Close your eyes," Alice practically squealed.

I obliged, despite knowing that I probably looked ridiculous. Was I supposed to act surprised when I saw it?

There was a small hand on my elbow, leading me forward slowly. When we stopped, I heard quiet laughter and I tried not to smile.

"Okay, open 'em," Alice said, breathlessly.

I opened my eyes, slightly smugly.

But the silver Volvo is not what I saw. My jaw fell involuntarily. There was a choking sound coming from my throat. After a few moments I composed myself.

"Is... is this... mine? This isn't supposed to be released until October, how did you..." I said, absolutely stunned.

Alice was beaming. "It was my idea! Don't you just love it? I saw you had the leather jacket and boots."

I shook my head, just staring. "This is ridiculous, there is no way I could ever accept this..." I muttered.

But I couldn't help moving closer, reaching my hand out towards the gorgeous black bike. I noticed it was silent, so I looked back toward them. They were all staring at me, with this weird smile on their faces.

"Of course you will accept it," Esme said, "Alice dear, go get the rest of it please."

My eyes widened. "The rest of it?" I said, a little too loudly.

She didn't say anything. Alice skipped back into the garage with her arms full. I immediately recognized everything she was holding.

She set the boots, jackets, gloves, and helmet on a shelf.

"We know you have a jacket, but we got another one, just in case," Rosalie said.

I just shook my head again, not taking my eyes off of the bike. I tried to mentally add up how much this all could have cost them, and the result was scary.

Emmett just laughed, "Well what are you waiting for? Take it for a ride!"

Esme glared at him, but Carlisle put a hand on her back and she relaxed.

My eyes went impossibly wide. He was joking right? I didn't even have my license, let alone my motorcycle license. And it all seem very reckless for Esme and Carlisle.

"This is not easy for me to say, but I trust you'll be safe Edward, and I just want you to be happy. Besides, Alice needs you out of the house for a couple hours," she said, grabbing Carlisle's head. "Just be safe, please."

"If I ever catch you without your helmet..." Carlisle warned, just like he used to. The only difference is that now he is taking about a Yamaha R-1, opposed to my old Schwinn bike.

I looked over towards Emmett and Jasper, who both had a weird mixture of jealously and contentedness on their faces.

Alice just flicked her hand, telling me to go. Despite myself, adrenaline was bubbling through my veins. It reminded me of what I used to do, but I loved it. Trying to bite down my excitement, I took the helmet from the shelf.

"Thank you. Seriously, I love it." I hugged Alice.

Esme still looked nervous, so I threw in a hug for her. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine."

She rolled her eyes, "Like asking water not to be wet, Edward."

Emmett pressed the keypad, opening the garage door. As the light started to stream in, I pulled on the boots, my favorite jacket, the gloves, and lastly, the helmet. Once this covered my face, I smiled freely, not being able to contain it.

Alice dropped the tiny key in my hand, and I hopped on the bike. The light outside never looked brighter, the bike was started, and I was smiling. .

I looked back once before slowly pulling out of the garage and down the driveway. Once I hit the road, I was off. I couldn't push the speed limit because I really didn't want to get pulled over with out a license. It was difficult, but I finally reached the freeway, maintaining the speed limit the entire way.

I was going 80 in less than three seconds. I knew this machine could go up to 200 miles per hour, but I was content at 90. I had ridden bikes a lot in my past, but nothing like this. I had taken a stolen Ducati on a five minute joy ride, before James made me get off.

But this was _my fucking bike_. I leaned down further, expertly weaving through cars. I was flying.

When my high alleviated slightly, I got on the exit ramp and pulled into a McDonald's parking lot. I realized that I left my phone at the house, so I had no way of knowing how long I had been out. I went inside to check the clock.

It was a little after eleven, so I had been on my bike for over an hour. I reasoned if I got home in an hour, Alice would have plenty of time to do whatever she needed to do. I shuddered at the thought.

I got back on the freeway, taking my time, enjoying the ride. I entered Forks, and reluctantly lowered my speed. I noticed people staring, and there were a lot of jaws dropping. I smiled and revved the engine a little bit.

I wound up the drive way, parking the bike in front of the house instead of the garage.

I hopped of the bike and took my helmet off. Some hair was sticking to my face in the humid air. I ran a hand through it, grimacing at how horrible my helmet hair probably was. I tucked the helmet under my arm and walked into the house.

Alice immediately ran up to me, "How was it? Do you like it?"

I raised an eyebrow, "It was absolutely incredible, of course I like it."

She smiled.

"Well I finished up with your other presents. But that can wait until later. Bella wants to know what you want for lunch."

Again, I raised my eyebrow. She must have understood my confusion.

"Bella and Mom are pretty much cooking partners. They split cooking, because they both enjoy it so much. How one can enjoy cooking, I will never understand," She said, shaking her head. "So what's on the menu?" She chirped.

"What sounds good to you?" I asked, one again not hungry.

"Ah, ah, ah. It's your birthday, not mine," She chastised.

"Um... how about... sandwiches?" I offered, thinking it sounded pretty lunch-y.

She rolled her eyes, smiling. "What kind of sandwich? Grilled cheese, lunch meat, BLT, chicken salad..." She listed.

"A BLT," I said, making it sound more like question.

"I'll go tell Bella. Everyone else is in the family room." I guessed that she was telling me to go into the family room, so I did.

Alice wasn't lying; every one was sitting in there, watching TV and laughing. When I entered, Rosalie patted the spot next to her.

I sat down on the couch, and tried to focus on what was on the TV. It was a movie I had never seen. Needless to say, it didn't hold my attention very much.

Before long, Bella was calling that lunch was done. This time, every one sat in the kitchen; either at the bar or the kitchenette table.

Emmett and Jasper asked me about the bike, and Rosalie joked about it being my 'Batmobile.' I answered in as few words as possible, but everyone seemed pretty content.

Esme asked me if I wanted to go out anywhere, and I all but yelled no. I wasn't ready for public appearances.

I couldn't eat anything, and I felt ashamed as Esme picked up my plate.

We retreated into the family room again, watching movies into the evening. Rosalie and Emmett were leaning on each other, sleeping. Carlisle was napping in his lazy boy as well, and most others looked like they were about to succumb.

I was sitting straight up, not even close to falling asleep. Every now and then I could feel Bella looking at me, but I refused to look anywhere but the television.

She stood up out of nowhere, and she was soon standing in front me. "Esme said you like lasagna, so I already made it. Is that okay?"

I just nodded, not really knowing what else to say.

"And I'm going to guess chocolate cake, with chocolate frosting?" I nodded again, remembering that I always used to ask for that kind of cake for my birthday.

The credits were rolling in front of me, and I honestly couldn't remember the plot of the movie. I thought of my bike, my beautiful, perfect, black 2011 Yamaha YZF R-1.

I stood up, remembering that I parked it outside. I was not about to let her sit in the rain all night. I walked out the door, only to find Bella sitting in one of the swings on the porch.

Her knees were pulled up, just like they were that night in my room. When she saw me, she muttered a "Hey."

I just nodded in her direction and shoved my hands in my pockets. I felt her eyes on me as I pushed my bike towards the huge garage. The door was locked. I closed my eyes, desperately trying to remember the code. After many failed attempts, I knew I had no other choice but to ask Bella for help. I put the kickstand down, and walked over to the porch.

She was still sitting there, looking up at the sky. I tried to ignore the moonlight on her face, just like I tried to ignore the way she was biting her lip. She jumped slightly when I reached her.

"Do you know the code to the garage?" I asked, feeling slightly ashamed. "Can't remember it."

"You probably do remember it, but they changed it. So it's not your fault," she said quietly.

I nodded, feeling slightly better for some reason.

"81-55-66," she finished.

"Thanks," I said, as I walked away. My eyes didn't leave her until she was out of sight.

I shook my head to clear it, and punched the numbers into the keypad. I rolled my bike to the place it was in that morning. I closed the door, and entered the house from the garage.

Emmett, Rose, Jasper, and Carlisle were still sound asleep in the family room. I walked into the kitchen and saw Esme, Bella, and Alice. They stopped talking as I walked in, and I found it slightly concerning.

Bella and Esme resumed cooking, and Alice just sat at the counter.

Alice gestured for me to sit next to her, so I slowly made my way to the seat next to her. She asked me more questions about my bike, like if I could take a passenger or if you could slide it under a semi-truck. I didn't necessarily enjoy it, but it passed time. Soon, Alice was waking people up for dinner.

The entire house smelled delicious, and I was pretty hungry. We sat in the formal dining room, and it was set up like it was for breakfast except the centerpiece was gone. Lasagna, salad, and breadsticks were passed around. I noticed that there were wine glasses at everyone's seat.

We started to eat in silence, accept for Emmett's occasional grunt of satisfaction. In the middle of the meal, Carlisle cleared his throat. He raised his glass, and I knew a toast was coming. I sighed, hoping he wouldn't ask me to say anything.

"Let's toast; to Edward, to his birthday, and to his return," He said, staring at me the whole time. It reminded me of something James once said, and for some reason I couldn't get his face out of my mind.

Everyone rose their glass, muttering "To Edward," in unison. I clinked my untouched cup with a couple others, and then downed the whole thing in one gulp.

That attracted a few stares, but I continued eating. We were soon all done, and Alice sprang up.

"Okay, let's get the cake!" All of the girls stood up, and Bella came around and took my plate.

They cleared the table, brought out the cake and ice cream, and lit the candles. My eyes were downcast the entire time. I looked up as they started singing. I wouldn't look at their eyes, only the cake. As they finished the song, I realized I had to make a wish.

For some reason, this upset me. What was my wish? What could I even wish for that I didn't already get? Did I deserve anything else?

The wax was starting to drip on the cake, so without thinking, I blew out the candles. No wish.

I ate the cake and ice cream they set in front of me, and tried not to moan at its deliciousness. As soon as every one finished, Alice popped up.

"Presents, part two!" We followed her, just like in the morning. This time, she led us to my room. This confused me. I didn't really want everyone in my room either.

She swung open my door. She pulled me into the room, and thankfully, everyone else stayed behind. There were a few wrapped presents on my bed, but most of it was already set up in my room. At my desk was a thin silver laptop. My bookshelf was now black and sleek, with dozens of new books. There was a new keyboard with its own stand and stool.

Alice then led me to my walk in closet. "This is my favorite part," she whispered.

She opened the door. It was completely filled. There were new shelves and drawers built into the walls, with every thing I could ever want to wear. There was shoes, watches, sunglasses, and belts. And not to mention the clothes. I had never owned so much clothing in my life, not even when I was young. It was coordinated by style, then color.

"Wow," I said simply.

Alice grinned, "The gifts on your bed are things individual people bought you and wrapped. All of this," she gestured around my room, "Isn't really a gift, just what you needed."

I looked to my bed, wondering how I could possibly have more presents. It was getting a little ridiculous. Alice took my hand and pulled me onto the bed. The others stepped a little further into my room.

She handed me a small blue rectangle, "This one's from Mom and Dad."

Sadly, I already knew what it was. I had stolen enough of these in my day, and I knew the weight and size by heart. I tore the paper off and acted surprised to see the iPod Touch. I actually couldn't wait to put music on it.

I realized that by 'individual people,' Alice meant couples. They never did anything alone; it was always in groups of two. Something that annoyed me slightly. I briefly wondered how Bella felt about that.

Rosalie and Emmett got me really nice Bose head phones for my iPod and Keyboard. Alice and Jasper got me a hand-bound book for my compositions.

I thanked everyone profusely, still not really understanding the amount of things that just became _mine_.

"You must be exhausted, it was a long day. Come on guys, lets give Edward some time alone," Esme said.

I turned away as they filed out of my room, staring out of my favorite window. The silence was interrupted by a tiny cough. I snapped my head around to see Bella standing in the doorway, with a gift bag dangling in her hands. She took a tiny step forward.

"I um, made you this, but I didn't think you'd want to open it in front of everybody..." she said slowly, testing my reaction.

I raised my eyebrow, admittedly curious, but made no move to get the present.

"I'll just leave it here," She dropped in on the floor, and started to leave.

"Thank you Bella," I said softly, not sure if she could hear me.

As soon as she shut the door, I grabbed the bag. I sat back down on the bed, tearing it open. Inside was a large book, a photo album. My heart started to sink.

Knowing that I would later regret it, I opened the album. The first picture Bella sitting in a chair with Alice hovering over her, doing her makeup. It looked like it was just after I left.

There were so many pictures. Of everyone at a party, of individual people on their birthday, of couples before school dances, of Emmett playing football and Jasper playing baseball, of Rosalie doing Emmett nails, of Bella cooking. Of everything that I had ever missed.

They went from past to present, and as I got to the last picture, I realized I was crying. I wiped a hand over my cheek gently, and brought it in front of my face, staring at the wetness incredulously. The last picture was taken hours before, when I received my bike.

It was me, hugging Alice. Her feet were completely off the ground. You could see my face clearly, and I was smiling. I slammed the book shut, angry at myself. I had missed so much, and they had accepted me so eagerly. I shoved the album back into the back, but felt something at the bottom of it. I reached into it, and pulled up a plate.

The plate had a muffin on it.

**A/N- If you want to see the bike, there's a link on my profile. The title of this chapter is named after **_Happy Birthday To You _**written by Patty and Mildred Hill. Thank you so much for reading! Review and tell me what you think :)**


	15. Best For Last

**A/N Hello Readers! Yes, I am alive. No, I am not abandoning The Lost Hero. Read on. **

BPOV

I thought we had made some sort of progress on Edward's birthday. I guess, in a way, we had. He'd been talking and smiling, albeit forced. But the next day, things were back to normal. He didn't talk unless he was spoken too, and even then, some times he would remain silent. I could see how it was affecting everyone, especially Esme. Carlisle, though distressed, seemed to understand most out of everyone. It must have been the doctor in him.

To make matters worse, that's when the media became unrelenting. Despite Carlisle's best efforts, photographers were constantly hunched in front of the new iron gate in front of the house, just waiting for something exciting to happen. Occasionally, one would even be caught in the surrounding forest. No news station could go 10 minutes without mentioning Edward's 'miraculous and mysterious' return. The reporters had so much fun with it because no one really knew what happened. The press conferences were vague, and it's not like Edward was talking to anyone about it. Everyone had their own versions of what happened, some realistic and some just plain ridiculous. I tried not to sink to their level, but I was curious.

Just like Esme had forewarned, Edward had a lot of things to do after his birthday. He went to the hospital the day after his birthday. After numerous tests, it was concluded that he had a concussion and some bruised and fractured ribs. Carlisle noticed that the broken ribs were weeks old, so they were already partially healed. When Carlisle asked Edward why he didn't tell him about the pain in his ribs, he said that he had become used to pain in his ribs and didn't think anything of it. I thought Carlisle was going to start crying.

Edward had gotten his driving license, including his motorcycling license. We had all expected him to jump on his bike as soon as he got home, but he just silently climbed up the stairs and went into his room. He did this every time he had to leave the house.

After two weeks, all the errands had been run. He refused to go to a psychiatrist, something that worried Esme greatly. He had been silently compliant throughout the whole thing. When someone asked him to do something, he would do it without a second thought. But when Carlisle brought up an appointment he had made with a colleague of his, Edward immediately refused. Esme couldn't bear to make him do anything he didn't want to, so she relented. I knew he hadn't been sleeping; he walked like a zombie. I would listen for the screams that signaled his nightmares, but they never came. I didn't have an excuse for going into his room late at night. No more muffins for Edward.

Carlisle had to eventually return to work, as did I. For some reason, I abhorred leaving the Cullen house. Between working at Newton's and practically living with them, I saw Charlie less and less. On one particular day, I was running out the door for work because I woke up late. That doesn't happen very often. I've always been extremely punctual and responsible, and I hated depending on Charlie to wake me up, which he did that morning. Right as I was about to close the door, Charlie pulled on my arm.

"Isabella, I think we need to have a talk," he said, looking slightly uncomfortable. He wasn't good with sentimental-father talks.

"Sure, but could it wait? I really have to get going," I pleaded.

He released my arm, "Yeah, but come right home. No stopping anywhere." It was obvious what he meant.

I drove to work as fast as my truck would allow, and arrived exactly at 8:30. It was one of my longer shifts, eight hours, so I had a lot of time to think. As hard as I tried, I couldn't keep Edward out of my thoughts for long. I thought about his hair, about what had happened to him during the past years, about the odd tattoo I saw when I walked in on him in his towel. I thought of Edward in his towel.

I was almost positive I knew what Charlie wanted to talk to me about, and I didn't really know what I was going to say. I wasn't ready to stop going to the Cullen's house, but the more I thought about it, I knew I was being selfish. Charlie had been eating leftovers all alone in an unclean house, while I was parading around in a white mansion, trying to get a glimpse of a boy who would probably never look in my direction again. I decided to ration my time between the two, three nights at home and four at the Cullen's. Compared to the seven I was used to, it was a bit of a change.

After an oddly tall man and his oddly short wife left with a bag full of bright orange hunting gear, I was free to go home. I had to remind myself to go to Charlie's and not Alice's.

When he arrived home from work, I had dinner all laid out. I explained that I knew I wasn't being very responsible, I promised dinner three nights a week, and that I would always have something in the fridge for him. He smiled after my speech, looking relieved.

"I'm just glad you're going to be around more. Thanks Bells." He got up and hugged me, a rare thing altogether, and sat down in the living room.

I sighed, balancing between accomplished and exhausted. I cleared the table, and decided the kitchen needed to be cleaned. I ran upstairs and grabbed my iPod, a gift from Alice a couple years ago. I pulled my hair up into a sloppy bun and pulled out my supplies.

I listened to music as I mopped, scrubbed and organized. Nearly finished, I wiped down the counters. Something caught my eye on the wall, and I whipped my head around.

The calendar hung there, with my color coordinated ink covering the page of July. A big blue circle around July 25th was screaming at me. I pulled my headphones out of my ears, trying to count back.

"Dad, what's the date?" I yelled, not taking my eyes off of the page.

"The 24th, why?" He asked, distracted by the game on the screen.

"No reason," I said quietly, blowing a piece of hair out of my face.

How had it already been a month? With all of the commotion, I had completely forgotten about Cranbrooke. I volunteered at Cranbrooke Home, an assisted living facility, year round, with the exception of the two months I got off in the summer. Tomorrow would be my first day back, starting at noon.

I tossed the dishrag into the sink and sighed. Dragging my feet up the stairs, I yelled a "Goodnight," to Charlie.

My phone started to vibrate, signaling me that I had gotten a text. I pulled it out of my pocket, already knowing it was Alice.

_**Are you coming over tonight?**_

I slowly typed out a reply, exhausted.

_**Can't, I have a new truce with Charlie. See you tomorrow night. **_

I pushed off my jeans with my feet and crawled under the covers, quickly falling asleep.

The next day, I got out of work at eleven. Although Cranbrooke didn't really give me a dress code, I liked to dress nicely, so I stopped by the house to change into darker jeans and white, short-sleeved blouse. Throughout the twenty minute drive to Cranbrooke, I slowly got more excited. I had truly missed everyone and having something useful to do with my time. This weird little ball of anticipation and nerves had settled into my stomach by the time I had parked in front of the beautiful facility. The heavy door was scalding in the summer heat, but a cool blast of air conditioning hit me as soon as I entered.

"Bella!" the receptionist, Kate, called out. I skipped up to her desk, breathing in the sterile, yet welcoming scent.

"Kate! How have you been?" I bent over her desk to give her a brief hug.

"It's been great, the nice weather has let us go to some really cool places. Some of them went to the art museum in Port Angeles last week!" Her smile was nothing short of infectious.

"That's really great," I looked at the clock, "Should I go in for lunch?"

She nodded quickly, "Oh they'll be so excited to see you Bella. I swear, Franklin asks about you daily."

I smiled at the thought of him. There were about seventy elderly people living at Cranbrooke, but Frankie was always my favorite. This was a fact I shared with only him. He promised he wouldn't tell.

Lunch didn't start for about 15 minutes, and they had just started setting tables. I felt at home, and remembered what I usually did. I went to the back and pulled on some plastic gloves. When I opened the door with an armful of silverware, a greeting party was waiting for me.

There were various other nurses, most in the 40's. The owners of Cranbrooke, Eleazar and Carmen, were there as well. Eleazar and Carmen were married, and had been friends with Esme and Carlisle for a while. It was them who had gotten me the opportunity to volunteer here.

"Bella darling, its great to have you back, we just haven't been the same since you left." Carmen said warmly as she pulled me in for a hug. "Please tell Esme and Carlisle we say hello."

I just nodded, my face burning from the attention.

Various other people welcomed me, but had to disperse because we were dangerously close to lunch time. I placed silverware, plates, cups, and napkins on all 13 tables. The residents started to arrive, and I waited anxiously by the coffee dispensers. Most made their way to their seats, not really noticing me in the large cafeteria.

I kept my eyes on table seven, my favorite table. Once all five of them were sitting down, I made my way towards them, trying not to skip.

When Franklin saw me he, he screamed "Isabella!" This drew a few glares from residents, and even some from the nastier cooks. I hugged him, and he kissed my cheek. His sweet grey eyes were young, and didn't match the rest of his aged body.

I blushed as the rest of them started to applaud. Other then Frankie, there was Rose, who was Jasper and Rosalie's grandmother, Miri, Clancy, and Liv. The ladies were all dressed up, and the men were smiling, probably flirting.

"Stop, please," I begged as I laughed. "You're going to get me in trouble. What can I bring for every body? The special is chicken salad sandwiches..." I trailed off looking at Clancy, knowing how much he liked those.

He laughed, a scratchy sound, and said "I'll take two!" I got everyone else's orders, and nearly ran to the kitchen to pick them up. I had to make three trips to the table to get everyone settled. Me and five other nurses were waiting on the residents. In about 10 minutes, the six of us had everyone eating.

Throughout lunch I walked around every table, trying to find familiar faces. I was greeted by most, but I had to introduce myself to the few that were new or had some form of Alzheimer's.

By the end of the hour, my cheeks were sore from smiling so much, and the many pinches they received didn't help either. As people filed out slowly, I cleared away plates and cleaned tables. Soon, everyone was gone except for table seven. I could hear them laughing incessantly, and couldn't help to smile as I made my way over.

"What is everybody laughing about?" I asked, pulling up a seat besides Frankie.

They just looked around at each other, giggling.

"Oh never mind that Isabella, lets talk about you! It's going to be so nice having you back!" Liv said.

"My poor cards haven't been used in months! You must play a deck with me soon," Clancy insisted.

I rolled my eyes, "Oh Clance, aren't you tired of losing all the time?" They laughed, and I snuck a glance at the clock. "I'm sorry, but I have to break up the party, we have to get the cafeteria ready for visitors," I said as I pulled out their walkers.

Once they were all situated, I let them go up to their rooms themselves, knowing how much it bothered them to receive too much help.

"I promise, I will see each one of you before I leave today," I called, already taking plates off the table.

For the rest of the day, I cleaned the cafeteria for the tours they give every other Tuesday, supervised for about an hour in one of the recreation rooms, where I played three games of Go Fish with Clancy, Frankie, and Rose, washed dishes, and made my promised visits to each of my friends. Needless to say, each visit took longer than originally planned. I sat with Eleazar and she gave me a schedule, fitted around my work schedule perfectly. I would volunteer ten hours a week, and even less during the school year. I didn't end up leaving until 5:30.

I pulled up to the large white house around six. I rushed up the steps and into the house, knowing that dinner had probably already started. Just like I had imagined, everyone was sitting around the table, minus Esme and Edward. I really tried not to be disappointed.

"Jelly Belly!" Emmett cried happily, and for a moment I thought he was going to say something nice, "go help Esme bring out food, I'm starving!"

I slapped him on the head, but continued on to the kitchen. Esme didn't look up from the gourmet pizza she was cutting. "Hello Bella, how was your day sweetheart?"

I grabbed a large bowl of salad and opened a drawer to search for the salad tossers. "It was great, although I haven't eaten all day and I could probably digest a couple full grown cows right now. Aha!" I exclaimed as I found the chic and probably really expensive salad tossers. She looked at me, frowning.

"Bella, you need to start taking care of yourself instead of everyone around you," she said, very motherly.

I just shrugged, very daughterly.

We walked into the kitchenette, setting the food in the middle of the table. I was just about to ask Esme how her day was in return when I saw Edward had taken a seat at the table. I closed my mouth and sat down directly across from him.

"So Bella, what's up with this truce you have going with Charlie?" Alice inquired, picking the mushrooms off her piece of pizza. I could feel eyes on me from across the table, and without thinking, I looked up. Edward's eyes met mine for an instant, before I tore them away. I cleared my throat, grabbing a piece from the center of the table.

"Oh, he just wants me to spend more time at home. So now I have a strict limit of four nights at the Cullen household a week." I picked up my pizza and began eating, starting at the crust, just like I always did.

Her eyes widened. "That's horrible! What are you going to do all day without me?"

I laughed nervously, still feeling him looking at me. "It's really not a big deal. Plus my shifts at Cranbrooke have started up again, so with that on top of work and the Advanced Placement school assignments, I will have plenty to keep me busy." She stuck out her bottom lip, but nodded. Emmett just shuddered in disgust.

"Oh that reminds me Bella, have you gotten the A.P. History packets yet? I was hoping we could work on them together," Jasper suggested.

"Yupp, just got them yesterday. I'll bring them tomorrow?" He nodded.

"Bella, how were Carmen and Eleazar? I would love to see them soon." Esme inquired.

"They were great, sweet as ever. They said hello." I chanced a quick peek at Edward, to see he was staring into his food intensely.

"And how was Granny Rose? Feisty as ever?" Emmett asked with a mouth full of pizza.

I laughed, "Of course. We talked about you a lot. She said you need to visit her with Rose and Jasper more. Some how, she found you charming."

Rosalie scoffed. "Last time I brought you, you told dirty jokes to all the men and got in trouble."

They continued to banter, but I couldn't really concentrate. I could feel him looking at me again, and was trying desperately to not look up. When people began holding their stomachs, I hastily grabbed plates, desperate to get away from Edward's glare. Alice met me in the kitchen, holding two empty plates.

She had a gleam in her eye as she smirked at me. I rolled my eyes.

"Alice, whatever's going on in that pretty little head of yours needs to stop," I warned, blushing for absolutely no reason.

"What?" she said defensively, "I was just curious as to why Edward was burning a hole in your face."

"He was not, go be useful and help me with the dishes," I commanded.

"Bella, you don't have to do everyone's dishes," she moaned for the thousandth time.

I just shooed her out of the kitchen, for the thousandth time.

As I lay in Alice's bed later that night, my body refused to fall asleep. I tossed and turned endlessly to no avail. Finally, at 2:34, I pushed off the covers angrily and stomped downstairs. Everyone was sleeping, so I decided to bake. Baking calmed me, and required my full attention, taking my mind away from anything else. I knew Esme didn't mind, and Emmett claimed he loved me a little more with every batch of brownies I made.

Being as quiet as possible, I pulled out all the ingredients for my Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies, a personal favorite. I began mixing ingredients together and hummed some song that was stuck in my head.

I nearly dropped the bowl when I turned around to see Edward leaning against the fridge.

"Jesus Edward, you nearly gave me a heart attack," I said, gasping slightly.

He looked down at his feet, "Sorry, I just... you know, couldn't sleep."

I nodded, "Neither could I." It was awkwardly quiet for a moment. "Did you need a glass of water or something?" I offered, trying to pull down the large T-shirt I was wearing.

"Oh, no, I just came down because I thought... maybe you were making muffins," he said slowly, then paused. "Why did you stop?"

His voice was small and sweet, unlike I had ever heard him sound. I had never seen him look so tired. I knew he was talking about my muffin delivery service.

"You don't need me to wake you up anymore, and I didn't really think you'd want me in your room at random points in the night to bring you baked goods," I said, slowly, gauging his reaction.

He nodded, and looked over my shoulder. "What are you making?"

"Peanut butter oatmeal cookies. My first batch is almost done; you should sit down and have some."

He just stood there for a while, before nodding and sitting down at the bar. I started a pot of coffee for him, then continued to scoop cookie dough onto a sheet, adding chocolate chips to the second batch for Emmett. I could feel his eyes on me the entire time.

I pulled the cookies out of the oven, and fixed his coffee then sat down across from him at the bar, pushing the cup and plate towards him.

"Enjoy," I said weakly.

He picked up the cookie and took a huge bite. I watched him eat, craving his approval. He closed his eyes and hummed, "Mmm, Bella this is delicious."

I smiled, pleased. "Thank you, they're my favorite." He nodded, grabbing another cookie.

"So you bake when you can't sleep?" He inquired. There was something peculiar about his voice, but I couldn't place it.

"Yupp," I said, popping the ending, "What about you? What do you do all night long?" I tried not to sound as curious as I was.

"I don't know, read, play my piano, think..." he trailed off, looking into space.

Scared that he was going to get all reclusive again, I blurted out the first thing that came to mind, "What are your nightmares about?"

His eyes suddenly focused, and for a minute I thought he was angry. But he relaxed and ran a hand through his hair. "You don't want to know," he mumbled.

"So they're bad?" I asked quietly, stupidly.

His eyes met mine, and he thought for a moment before shrugging. I took that to mean that they were bad.

"Bella, why do you eat your pizza backwards?" He asked quietly, out of no where.

I blushed, busying myself in wiping the crumbs off the counter. "I don't know, its how my mom and I have always done it. Save the best for last, you know?"

He nodded, looking thoughtful, but remained silent.

Everything I wanted to say was somehow connected to his past, so I stayed quiet, trying to think of safe topic. Finally, I asked, "So, what kind of music do you like?"

Something weird happened in his eyes, and he looked around like he just realized what he was doing. He stood up suddenly, looking confused.

"Edward?" I asked, terrified that I had said something to upset him.

He looked towards me, but didn't meet my eyes, "Thank you Bella. I need... I'm going to bed."

I just stared at him, speechless. He turned around and walked up the stairs, never looking back. I couldn't identify the weird tingly feeling in my chest, but assured myself that it was not because of Edward.

**A/N Soooooo, what did you think? I know it may seem like some sort of filler chapter, but I assure you it was necessary to get to know Bella more. I realized that I have a whole lot of original characters, and I hope that okay with all y'all. I also realized that there is a book by Rick Riordan called **The Lost Hero**. Weirrrrd. **

**The chapter of the title was inspired by **_Best for Last_** by Adele, one of my all-time favorite songs. **

**So click the button and send a review my way. Was it a good chapter? You could just copy and paste the following answers to make things easier for yourself; Yes :) , No :( , It was okay :\ . **

**Okay, I'm done. Thanks again, xoxo. **


	16. Falling Slowly

**A/N- Hey, long time no update! My apologies!**

July 28, EPOV

I had been staring at my ceiling for countless hours. The sharp knock on my door should have made me jump, but it didn't. Without waiting for any further invitation, Emmett strode into my room. I slowly peeled my eyes off of the ceiling to look at him. I could see Jasper standing slightly behind him, looking anywhere but into my room. I assessed their clothing and immediately knew what they were here for. He started to explain, but I just nodded, getting off of my bed. I padded into my closet, which I only entered when in absolutely needed to. I closed the door and quickly changed into the least flashy athletic clothing I could find. There was a ridiculous amount of tennis shoes, one for every kind of physical activity I could dream of. I hastily grabbed a pair of plain Nike running shoes and walked out.

Emmett and Jasper were still standing at my door, and looked to be arguing quietly. They stopped as soon as I stood in front of them.

"Well alright then, to the gym!" Emmett said in a loud, deep voice as he thrust his fist into the air. Jasper rolled his eyes but led us down the stairs.

I silently prayed that we wouldn't run into her, but of course, we did. She was wiping down the table with something lemon-y in the dining room. Little white wires were coming from her ears, telling me she was listening to music. She pulled out an ear-bud and looked up when she saw us approaching. She smiled at Emmett, but it quickly disappeared when she noticed I was there. For some reason, she blushed and looked down, mumbling a shaky goodbye. Emmett raised an eyebrow, suggestively looking between Bella and me, but I refused to look at him. He just smiled and opened the door.

I felt slightly light headed and extremely relieved as I closed the door behind us. Emmett was smiling goofily at me the entire walk to the Jeep. I slowly shook my head and pretended not to notice. He continued to grin at me while he was driving, so finally Jasper lightly smacked him on the face and begged him not to kill us with his ridiculous driving.

He was still smirking when we got out of the car an hour later. In my annoyance, I briefly wondered how one could smile for so long. I could barely stand smiling for five minutes.

"Here Edward, we got you a membership card," he said, holding out a shiny silver card. I grabbed the card, but he wouldn't let go of it. I was forced to meet his eyes, and he continued to smile knowingly at me. I rolled my eyes and managed to tug the card out of his hand, desperately trying to hide the grin that was forcing its way up. I walked ahead of them into the large, freezing building. I didn't stop until I got to the long line of treadmills, and stepped on to the first one I saw. If there were any other people next to me, or even in the entire gym, I didn't see them. I couldn't stop thinking about Bella.

Ever since our early morning meeting in the kitchen, I had tried my hardest to avoid her. I knew I would change my mind if I looked at her.

That night, I realized how stupid I had been. It was the moment I felt the hope creep in that I knew I had to stop. I was beginning to like Bella way too much for comfort. A monster didn't deserve to get the girl. I was resolute in my decision to distance myself from her, for her own good.

That was, until about an hour ago.

I shook my head to try to clear the image of her from my mind, and started the machine I was on. I vaguely noticed Jasper and Emmett get on the treadmills on either side of me. I could feel Emmett looking at me, but I just stared straight ahead, becoming completely distracted in the thought of her.

After some time had passed, I was brought back to reality as Emmett jumped off the treadmill. He was sweating and panting, but continued to hop up and down on the floor.

"Damn Eddy, you're going to outrun Jasper!"

Confused, I looked over at Jasper to see him running at a much slower pace. It was actually probably a decent jog, but compared to my near sprinting it seemed slow. I looked down and noticed I was completely covered in sweat.

"How long has it been?" I asked, gasping in the middle of the sentence, making me aware of how completely out of breath I was.

"Dude, you've been running like that for over an hour," Jasper said worriedly, only slightly out of breath.

I felt my eyes widening as I looked down the little screen on the treadmill. A digital 10.3 was flashing under 'Miles.' I quickly pressed the big red button, and slowed to a stop. As I bent over gasping for air, my numb legs slowly started to ache.

Jasper stopped his too and quickly caught his breath. "Emmett, I think you might have been right earlier," he said, somewhat reluctantly.

Emmett pumped his fist in the air. "Ha! Told you!"

I stood up straight on my shaking legs, looking between them. "Right about what?" I asked, with a sinking feeling that it was about me. I could only imagine them discussing me and what they could have said.

They looked at each other, silently communicating. I used to be able to do that.

Emmett grabbed my shoulder with a large hand. "Edward, we want you to join the football team!"

I searched their faces for any sign of it being a joke. I slowly started shaking my head. "No way," I said simply. They just kept looking at me.

"No," I said more firmly. Emmett smiled.

"Seriously, that is not a good idea."

Jasper crossed his arms. "Says the guy who just ran 10 miles in an hour."

"I haven't played football in... well, four years I guess," I finished quietly. I knew that we were all thinking of the day before my departure. That glorious, perfect day.

After a moment Emmett said, "I seriously doubt you just forgot how to play football. That shits encoded in your DNA, man."

I thought of the middle school football team that me, Emmett, and Jasper had been on. Practice started in late August for us, and even earlier for the varsity team. It was something that we all aspired to do, ever since we were little. I had always imagined being the quarterback, carrying the team on my back. It all seemed so ridiculous now.

"Look, I just...can't. Sorry," I said, my mind somewhere else entirely.

I was remembering a boy wearing a varsity jacket that Tanya and I had mugged. She stopped him on the street and flirted heavily with him, luring him into an alleyway, where I proceeded to sneak up from behind him and smash a brick into his head in just the right place to knock him out for a while.

We ended up with a huge, diamond class ring, two gold medals off his jacket, a brand new iPod and around two-hundred dollars from a wallet with his girlfriend's senior portraits in it. I remember thinking about how perfect that guy's life probably was; he had the girl, the money, and the talent. And how if things had been different, that could easily have been me laying in a dark, graffiti covered alley. I wanted it to be me so badly it hurt.

Now I had my chance, and I was throwing it away. At the same time, it almost felt good to deprive myself of something that I wanted.

"Alright Eddy, I understand if you want to be a dick and make our team suck without you, but at least just come to the summer practices. It will get you out of that girl-infested house and onto the sweaty, testosterone-y field. You can channel that whole brooding, depressed, angry thing you got going into kicking Mike's ass," Emmett said in one breath, gesturing wildly with his hands. I grinned despite myself.

"Is Mikey still a spineless douche bag?" I asked, recalling how he pathetically followed us around in middle school.

Jasper shuddered, "Even worse, he's a brave douche bag now. He still follows us around shamelessly, but it's usually because of Bella now."

I tried not to react to that, but I felt myself stiffen. "What do you mean?" I asked, completely failing at sounding indifferent. Jasper was kind enough to act like he didn't notice. Emmett crossed his arms and smiled stupidly, realizing my weakness.

"Oh yeah, Mike's got it _bad_ for Belly-Bear. He asks her out at least once a week. Basically undresses her in his mind every time he looks at her. All he needs is a moustache to twist and white van to lurk in and he's practically a sexual predator," he said, assessing my face the entire time.

I wanted to growl and ask when practice started, but I kept my cool, knowing how absurd my protectiveness would seem. She wasn't even mine. I barely knew her at all.

"I'm sure you guys can handle it," I said as I walked over to kickboxing area, because I knew how protective Emmett was of Alice and Rose, and I knew he would never let anything happen to any one of them. It didn't stop me from wishing I was the one protecting them, or that I was the one smashing Mike's face in. I knew how to make a murder look like an accident.

Emmett of course didn't buy it, but he went along. He kept talking as we strapped on gloves and sat down next to Jasper on a bench, "Yeah, you're probably right. But its not just Mike really, she's got a whole legion of horny bastards trailing behind her, doesn't she J?" Jasper nodded sadly, mouthing 'it's true' to me. Emmett continued, "With Rosie's hotness distracting me, and Jasper being so absolutely pussy whipped for your sister, Bella's sometimes left alone to defend herself against her swarm of admirers."

I clenched my jaw at the thought of it, not being able to tell how much of it was a bluff and how much was the truth. I began to punch the bag I was in front of, imagining it was 13 year old Mike's face. I tried to restrain myself when I saw Emmett and Jasper smirk at each other.

Now I had the images of killing people and Bella surrounded by sweaty teenage boys swimming through my mind. The more Emmett talked, the more I wanted to give in. So I had to stop him from talking. I stilled my fists and turned towards him.

"Look you guys, thanks for suggestion, but I think I can handle my life on my own," I could feel the edge to my words, but I didn't soften them. "I get the whole lets-bring Edward-out-of-his-shell thing, I really do, but it's not necessary. If I wanted to play football, I would play. But I don't. If you're trying to make me into some All-American quarterback, I'm sorry. It's just not me anymore. If you hadn't noticed, I'm not the little boy you used to know."

I turned back to the bag so I didn't have to see their faces. Emmett stood up, but I kept my focus on the cadence of my strikes.

"Have fun handling _your_ life and doing things that _you_ want to do. But while you're so concentrated on yourself, I'll try to concentrate on taking care of your entire family while you're off being a reclusive asshole," he said as he walked out of the room. My punches faltered slightly, and I knew he could tell that his words hit home.

I leaned my forehead against the red lining of the bag. I could see Jasper rise out of the corner of my eye. He just stared at me for a minute before saying, "You put up a good front Edward, but you're not fooling me."

As the door closed behind him, I let out a sigh of relief and sat down on the bench. I was exhausted from my ridiculous run and my almost bipolar amount of mood changes in such a short period of time. A part of me knew that Emmett was right, but at the same time, he didn't know what he was saying. Better to leave well enough alone with my family, then to infect them with whatever it is I was.

I don't know how long I sat there. I lost myself in a mixture of memories and thoughts of the future. A vibration in my pocket shifted my eyes into focus. I pulled out my phone to see a text from Jasper.

'We're heading to the car'

Slowly I peeled the gloves from my hands and felt the dread of the impending car ride creep through me.

BPOV

As soon as the door closed behind Emmett, Jasper, and Edward I sat down in one of the dining room chairs and hit my head against the table repeatedly.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid," I grumbled every time my forehead hit the mahogany.

I had not seen Edward since our random talk over cookies in the kitchen that night. Alice had confirmed that he had not left his room in two days. I was not conceited enough to believe that it was because me of me, but a small part of me wondered. And that part was mortified. What had I done that made him so desperate to stay away from me?

I had just decided that I would start to bring him muffins again, when he appeared with Emmett and Jasper. I could feel my face heat up for absolutely no reason, and turned my head down so I wouldn't stare and his pale but large arms hanging down from his dark green sleeve-less shirt.

My head started to throb where I had been slamming it against the table, so I slowly lifted it so see what time it was. An intricate wooden Grandfather clock told me that it was one thirty in the afternoon. They would be back from the gym just in time to shower and eat dinner if they kept to their usual four hours, including the two hours of driving. I figured there was a strong possibility that Edward would be joining us for dinner.

Esme was letting me cook tonight due to the fact that she was running errands all day in Port Angeles. I decided now was as good a time as ever to go grocery shopping, hoping that it would distract me from feeling so sorry for myself. I trotted up the stairs, trying to think of something we hadn't eaten in a while that would impress Edward.

The cool metal surface of Alice's door knob warmed in my hand as I stood outside her room, looking at Edward's door.

I remembered all the times I had slept in his bed, and the black pillow that I had taken home a couple years ago with Alice's permission. It was the perfect combination of firm and soft and for some reason I found that I slept much better with it under my head. It probably cost more than any pillow should, but I doubted the price had anything to do with its soothing capabilities.

I sighed and walked into Alice's room, straight to the drawer where my credit card was. Esme insisted I use it when she discovered that I had been using my own money to stock their fridge. In reality, I only used it when she seemed suspicious of the ever-filled fridge and blank credit card statements.

Huge drops of rain were falling from the sky when I left, instantly soaking my hair and shoulders as I made my way to my truck. Tom Petty crackled through my speakers on a fuzzy radio station which also happened to be the only station my precious truck received.

Soon I was pulling into the local grocery store's parking lot. I actually loved grocery shopping, despite how much I hated clothes shopping with Alice. I ran up to the doors, an altogether dangerous thing to do in the rain. Miraculously, I made it into the building with all limbs intact. I racked a hand through my soaking hair and grabbed a burnt orange shopping basket that looked like it was manufactured in 1975.

Expertly weaving through the isles, I gave the occasional wave to familiar faces. I stopped when I saw Mrs. Newton, Mike's grandmother, wandering around in Isle 4 looking lost. Mike was supposed to drive her to the store and help her out, getting things she couldn't reach or read tiny writing for her.

"Hello Mrs. Newton," I said as I approached her. She turned around at my voice and smiled when she saw me.

"Isabelle, what a pleasure to see you here! How are you dear?"

I didn't bother correcting her, just took her basket out of her frail arms.

"I'm great, thank you. Where is Michael on this lovely afternoon?" I asked, trying not to let my annoyance with him seep through my words.

She looked around, "He said he had to go do something, but that was nearly fifteen minutes ago. I was just looking for him; I've finished what I could without him."

I smiled to keep from frowning. Mike's ignorance never failed to amaze me.

"Mrs. Newton, how about you give me your shopping list and ill go grab everything you may have missed. I'll keep an eye out for Mike too."

She smiled and patted my hand, "You truly are one of a kind Isabelle. I'll just go wait by the coffee and sit with Mr. Sanders."

After I could see that she was in fact sitting down on a bench with Mr. Sanders, I looked at her list and basket and knew that I would have to put nearly everything away and start from scratch.

I went through every isle, carrying her basket in one arm and mine in the other. It wasn't easy, but I'd managed to develop a technique of balancing one on my knee when I needed to grab something off a shelf. I was squeezing tomatoes with one hand, holding a basket in the crook of that arm, and holding the other in my opposite hand when someone tapped me on the shoulder.

"Hey Bella, fancy seeing you here," Mike said, trying his best to look charming. I smiled sweetly, and continued to bag the perfect tomato and drop it into Mrs. Newton's basket.

"Mike! How odd, I don't see your grandmother," I said, looking around for dramatic affect.

His smile slightly faltered, "Oh, she didn't come today, just picking up a couple of things for the house."

I nodded and pursed my lips, then opened my mouth and eyes like I'd just had a brilliant idea. "No, wait! I actually _do_ remember seeing her here. She was wandering down an isle with almond cereal in her basket. But wait, isn't she allergic to almonds?" I asked innocently.

He looked down and noticed the extra basket I was carrying. His cocky smile turned apologetic. "Shit, Bella,"

"Save it Mike, just don't let it happen again," I said coolly, shoving the basket into his chest.

He tried to say something else, but I just walked away. "Everything's in there, she's waiting by the coffee," I called out behind me.

Twenty minutes later I was setting my paper grocery bags on the Cullen's counter. Before I started dinner, I went up to Alice's room to change into dry clothes and brush my crazy rain hair. As I walked back down the stairs, I called out a "Hello?" and a "Is anyone home?" but there was no response. The prospect of being alone the enormous house used to worry me, but now I kind of enjoyed it.

Excitement started to surge through me, and I tried not to think of how sad it was that I was excited to cook. I turned Michael Bublé on the music system loud enough to fill the kitchen, but not so loud that I would be embarrassed if someone happened to come home. Once I had my light pink apron on and my hands were washed, I unloaded everything from the bags and set it up into two different piles on the counter; one for dinner and one for dessert.

I knew that dinner wouldn't take me too long, so I started on dessert so that it could chill while I made dinner. A layered tiramisu cake was on the menu, and I dived into it, losing myself in the steps. The recipe called for a boxed cake mix, but that wasn't my style. I whipped up some vanilla cake from scratch with a recipe that I had memorized years ago. The batter was divided into three pans, and some brewed coffee from this morning was added into one of them. While they baked, I made the filling and frosting, trying my hardest to get the perfect consistency. The entire process of making the cake took nearly two hours. It probably would have only taken one hour, but I took every step so seriously and deliberately that it doubled the time. When I finally placed the last perfect chocolate curl on the top, I stepped back to take a look. I crossed my arms, nodding to myself in appreciation. It was a hell of a cake.

Just then, the front door opened and I heard Alice and Rosalie's voices.

"Bella?" Alice yelled from the foyer.

"In the kitchen!" I replied and turned down the music a bit.

"I can already tell that you're about to get a big hug. Is that chocolate I smell?" Rosalie said as she walked in. When she saw the cake, her eyes lit up. "Damn Bella, really bringing out the big guns tonight aren't you?"

I shrugged, although that is exactly what I did. "Nope, I just had a lot of time on my hands."

Alice popped in the kitchen, leaning over the cake and smelling it, "Mmm, please get bored more often. Where are the boys?"

I turned around to wash my hands, trying to sound blasé as I said, "I think they went to the gym or something."

It was quiet for a moment, so I turned around, leaning on the sink.

"Did Edward join them on this trip to the 'gym or something?'" she asked knowingly, air quotes and all.

"Yupp," I said, popping the ending. She nodded, looking thoughtful.

"So I was thinking like a shrimp penne for dinner?" I said weakly, trying to change the subject.

"Bella, I'm sure whatever you make will be heavenly. Now come upstairs and act interested in all the cool stuff me and Alice bought," Rose said, already heading towards the stairs, her arms full of bags. I quickly put the cake in the fridge, and followed them to Alice's room.

It was genuinely entertaining to see Rose and Alice pull items of clothing out of a bag, then proceed to demonstrate what they would do when they were wearing them. They were 'bringing all the boys to the yard' while holding a pair of jeans to their hips when we heard Esme and Carlisle call out that they were home.

I rose off of her huge bed and stretched. "Im going to go start on dinner before your mom beats me to the punch."

"Alrighty, just let us put this stuff away and we'll go down there when we're done," Alice said, folding the jeans in her hands.

When I got down stairs, Carlisle was taking off Esme's coat.

"Hello Bella, how was your day? Is everyone home?" Carlisle asked as he hung their coats in the hallway closet.

I pulled on my apron again. "Alice and Rose are upstairs, and the boys- all of the boys- should be back from the gym any minute," I said, sneakily gauging their reactions to the news that Edward had finally left his room. Esme beamed, and Carlisle seemed to shed 10 years.

"Wonderful!" Esme cried, "What's for dinner Chef?"

I smiled and began pulling out the pans I would need. "I was thinking penne covered in vodka infused cream sauce with shrimp and tomatoes," I said animatedly, knowing Esme would approve of my choice.

"Sounds absolutely delectable. Let me go set the table for you," Esme said, and I knew it wasn't a question. She grabbed a handful of the black place mats and went to work.

"Well I'm going to go change and wash up, call me when it's done," Carlisle said as he walked to their room.

I was humming happily and sautéing the shrimp and tomatoes in olive oil, garlic, and basil when the door opened. My stomach did a weird flip thing as I heard all three boys walk up the stairs with out saying a word to anyone. I tried to tell myself not to be disappointed if Edward didn't come down for dinner, although I knew I would be.

The next fifteen minutes seemed to crawl by, and when the noodles were finally the perfectly al dente, I yelled out a "Dinners ready!" to the house.

I quickly tossed the penne with the sauce and scooped it into one of Esme's beautiful serving dishes. I carried it to the table, and noticed that she had set out everyone's drinks and a salad. I took a deep breath as I took in the perfect table.

Just then the doorbell rang, and as I moved to answer the door I was surprised to hear a velvety voice yell out, "I've got it."

I smiled a little bit and shared a look with Esme. Edward was answering the door now.

Everyone began to sit down at the table, and remark about the food. I smiled in thanks, truthfully only really thinking about Edward and who could be at the door. When everyone had a helping on their plate, Emmett's around three times the size of mine, Edward came in and sat down.

Something was off about his demeanor, and it reminded me about his strange reaction to my question two nights ago. His fists were clenched at his side and his jaw seemed tight.

"Who was at the door Edward?" Esme asked curiously as the rest of us ate quietly, intrigued to hear the answer.

He looked up, straight into my eyes. My breath caught, but before I could even react, he switched his focus to Emmett. He answered to him, as if he had asked the question.

"It was Mike Newton. He convinced me to join the football team."

**A/N- Did you like it? I really am sorry that it has taken so long, and there really aren't any excuses for it. The song is Falling Slowly from the movie Once. **

**Review and tell me how it was/how much you hate my weird update schedule! **

**xoKelly**


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